A Howl At Midnight
by Claire-1875
Summary: This is my version of the Jacob and Renesmee story. I really hope you like it! Please, R&R. Thanks!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One; Jacob.

Did you ever stop to think about how your life would be if you had done even the smallest things differently? Like, if you had said no, instead of yes, or if you had left your house just five minutes earlier? Or, how about if you had decided to stay at home, rather than visit a friend the day you found the love of your life? Ever thought about that? I certainly have.

I realize now that these tiny choices can mould and shape your life into something you never thought it could be. When i look back on all the choices I've made in my own life, i know that I'll be eternally thankful of one in particular. The choice to go back to the girl i loved, needed, and adored. I went home that day with a heavy heart and dark thoughts. I sort of always knew that Bella would choose Edward, and when i look at them now, i see why. They're meant to be. Just like i realized that same day, that me and Renesmee are meant to be too. Meant to be what though? That's a choice i still had to make...

I will forever remember the day i found her, the day I imprinted on Nessie. It was almost exactly eighteen years ago. After all that time, though, i can still remember exactly how i felt, how the air smelled, how the weather was that day, everything. A second before i saw her, i had just lost my best friend. Or so i had thought anyway. Whenever i think about it, which is often, I can still feel the lead in my legs as i walked downstairs, away from her frozen heart. I had always had a gravity that drew me towards Bella, which i thought meant we were soul mates, supposed to be together. But when her heart had stopped beating and i thought she was gone forever, i felt that same pull yanking me downstairs, away from her. I followed it willingly, wanting to be anywhere else but there, in that room, with that vampire and his dead wife. So, i allowed myself to be forced into the front room, where Blondie was cooing to the monster who had just killed my Bella. Anger rippled through me as i stared at the space where the suckling noises were coming from. I was shaking so hard, i was almost vibrating. I was a second away from phasing, from taking one huge leap across the room and lunging at Rosalie and the tiny murderer. Then she looked at me. It was the strangest feeling ever, one i will never experience again. The intensity of it was breathtaking. The baby looked at me through impossibly observant, beautiful brown eyes and i knew i would be tied to her forever. As simple as that. From that moment on, wherever Nessie was, was where i had to be. It physically hurt to be away from her for more than a few hours. Even now, after the years that have passed, i still can't bear to be kept from her. I now understand what Edward meant when he said "She is my everything.

"Jake! Ness! Come in here, NOW! I will not ask you again!" Bella called, anger shadowing her beautiful face.

"Momma... we're just here! Calm down." Nessie replied, giggling back at her mother.

"Renesmee Carlie Cullen! Do not make me come out there and get you two... You're going to be late!"

Nessie rolled her eyes at the threat. You knew you were in trouble if Bella called you by your full name. It always made me chuckle.

"C'mon Jake. We better get moving. I really don't want her coming out here, she'll go ballistic" Nessie sighed, climbing neatly on to my back.

She dug her knees in between my shoulder blades and wrapped one delicate hand in my long, shaggy hair. She leaned down to kiss the top of my head once, stroking down the hair on my neck with the other hand. I sighed once, turned to give her a wolfy grin, and then dropped on to all fours. Running with Renesmee on my back was a daily event. I was her favorite mode of transport, she'd once told me.

"Even though i don't feel the cold, ever, I sort of feel... a different kind of warmth this way. It's like a safety harness, you know? I know I▓ll always be safe with you." She had explained, when i asked her why she insisted on running this way, when she was just as quick as me.

I didn't mind at all. I knew what she meant, and i felt the same way, of course.

So, now, as we ran back to the house at lightening speed, she squealed with delight in my ear, like she did every time. I dodged the trees, jumped the lake and leaped over the giant boulders that made her giggle, today doing it in record time. Although i laughed about it, there really was nothing funny about making Bella angry. Even for me, a giant, supposedly fearless werewolf, there was nothing scarier than Bella with a rage on. You see, it was particularly scary because she hardly ever got seriously angry, but when she did, you knew you had really gone too far. She was always pissy with me about something stupid I'd done, but never really angry. Well, not really since she had found out about my imprinting on Renesmee in the first place. . . I shuddered slightly at the memory and ran faster still.

Running like this, with Nessie on my back, giggling as I made neighing noises to entertain her, was when i was at my happiest. I never, ever got bored of spending time with her. When she was little, i let her cover me in make-up, braid my hair and paint my nails, all because it made her happy. My pack brothers got a real kick out of that one. No matter what she wanted to do, it was fun for me, as long as she was there. But, now, she was older, and things had changed. She painted her own nails and braided her own hair now, instead of mine. She wasn't a little girl anymore. Of course, Renesmee had never been, what you would call, a conventional little girl. Always bigger, and smarter for her biological age. She grew, physically, mentally and emotionally, at a rapid rate, which had always scared the hell out of the rest of us. But, about eleven years ago, she stopped growing. Although she continued to learn, she reached maturity exactly seven years after her birth. So, now, Nessie looked like any other seventeen year old girl. Which, of course, at first, scared us all too.

She done things every other teenage girl done, like school, shopping and going to parties. Nessie had a lot of friends. She was a genuinely, warm and happy girl. People gravitated towards her, they always had. She could win over the coldest of hearts. She had proved that all those years ago with the strange, red-eyed vampires. You couldn't help but love her, so she was never short of attention. With waist length, curly hair, the same bronze colour of her fathers, and big, bright, warm brown eyes, she was beautiful, exquisite. You could see, from the way other boys looked at her, that they wished she would pay them some attention. But she never did. Every party she went to, every shopping trip she went on, she asked me to come along, and i eagerly went. So, this was where we were heading tonight, another party. However, the party tonight was special. Today was Renesmee's 18th birthday. Well, her first 18th birthday anyway. This was big for everyone, and we were all nervous.

"What if no one comes, Jake?" She whispered suddenly

I stopped running immediately and stood up. Nessie slid off my back and looked at me. I held up one paw, and turned to run swiftly into the trees. I was back in a second, in human form, wearing a pair of old sweats.

"You don't have to go in to the woods to phase, you know, Jacob. It doesn't scare me. . . Or embarrass me." She added, with a slight blush to her cheeks which contradicted her statement.

I ignored that and answered her first worried question,

"Of course people will come Ness. Don't be silly! This is going to be, like, the biggest party of the year!" I grinned at her. She elbowed my ribs for my mock, high-school enthusiasm.

"Stop it, Jake! I'm serious! I'm so nervous! Mom says that she's had an r.s.v.p from almost everyone she invited, but still, what if something comes up and they can't make it? Or what if they all decide that they don't want to come any more?" She looked at me with devastated eyes, her bottom lip slipping in to a pout.

"Renesmee Carlie Cullen, that is enough of that!" I said, wagging my finger at her. She smiled slightly at my impression of her mother.

"Seriously though, Ness. Of course people will come. They love you, they want to celebrate your birthday with you. Stop panicking."

I took her face in between both my hand and kissed her lightly on the forehead, "Now, lets get moving before your mother bans us both from the party for being late!"

She grinned at me, relaxed slightly and covered my right hand with her left. She looked deep in to my eyes for a second, then sighed, and pulled my hand down from her face, locking her fingers in to mine.

"I guess you're right. Thanks, Jake." She smiled sweetly at me.

Just then, we heard a quiet throat clearing and turned towards the house. Bella stood with her back against the big glass back door, arms crossed, tapping one foot, glaring out at us.

"Uhoh." Nessie giggled. Then she tightened her grip on my hand and we ran back to the house, laughing until we skidded to a halt in front of, a less than amused looking, Bella.

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I swallowed loudly, "Hey, Bells. Erm.. what's up?" I asked carefully.

"What's up? What's up he asks me! Jacob, i have been yelling at you two to come into this house for almost an hour! What do i have to do to get you to listen to me? I am not your mother Jacob, but i am Renesmee's and she will do as i ask! Do you hear me? I'm not asking for a lot. I am not going to. . . Renesmee, what is so funny?" She glared from one to the other of us.

Nessie stood, the whole time, looking at her mother with a grin on her face, "Nothing, Momma. I love you, that▓s all." She kissed Bella on the cheek and danced away, shouting "Aunt Alice!"

Bella stood staring at the spot from which Nessie had vanished for half a second, then turned her eyes to follow Ness skipping upstairs. A reluctant smile spread across her face, then she turned back to me. I stuck my tongue out at her and ducked as she took a swing at me,

"Get upstairs and change, Jacob. You're going to be late." She grinned.

I stood poker straight and saluted to her, "Yes, ma'm!" Then i darted away before she could get the shot into my ribs.

Bella giggled and shouted after me, "And take a shower, Jake! You smell like a dog!"

I jumped the stairs, taking three at a time. Having long legs really saved a lot of time. I ran along the second floor until i came to the room that was now mine and threw myself in. I really was late! I rushed through my shower, and got dressed at record speed. I knew i had to let Alice give me the once over before i would be allowed to mingle with the guests. My messy hair and nonchalant attitude towards my appearance had always irritated her. Tonight though, i was going to make an effort. Alice would have nothing to complain about. I had washed my hair and had brushed it, neatly into a low ponytail. My jeans were pressed and my shirt was creaseless. She'd even bought me new shoes. I took one last glance in the mirror, nodding in approval at myself, and went to find the inspector.

I got to Alice's bedroom door and heard soft music playing, with Nessie singing sweetly along, in her perfect voice. I smiled to myself at the beautiful sound before knocking on the door,

"Hey ladies. It's only me. Everyone decent?" I asked through the door.

The door was just about ripped off its hinges as Alice pulled it open. " Jacob, don't joke with me, please? I don't have time for it! Get in here!" She growled at me, pulling me in before leaping into the hall, yelling, "Bella! Your turn! Hurry up!" The door closed behind her with a snap.

Joke with her? What had i done now? I looked at Nessie to ask what that was all about, but instead i stopped dead in my tracks, and i gasped. Renesmee stood in front of Alice's long vanity table, looking at me expectantly.

"What?" She asked, quickly, when i didn't speak " Do i look ok? Is it too much?" She waved her hand at her dress.

I stood frozen, my eyes moving slowly from her head to her feet. Her hair was cascading down her back, a delicate, silver tiara placed on top. Along her throat, lay a thin line of small, glittering diamonds, held there with a silver chain so thin, it was almost invisible. Her dress was black satin, starting with thin straps, flowing flawlessly down to the floor, almost completely covering her new high silver shoes. She twirled slowly and when she did i saw that the dress was backless, the material just meeting the sides at the bottom of her back. On her wrist she wore a familiar bracelet. It was a charm bracelet, holding one small, intricately carved wooden werewolf on one side and a blindingly sparkling heart shaped diamond on the other. The bracelet i had given her mother as a graduation present so many years ago. Edward had added the diamond the night Bella and him got engaged. It fitted Nessie perfectly and finished off her outfit with precision. I had never in my life seen anything so beautiful as Nessie tonight.

"Wow," I choked out " Nessie. . .You look. . ." I couldn't finish. There were no words for how wonderful she looked.

"Is that good? Jake, tell me honestly, do i look ok?" She asked nervously.

I walked over to her slowly and looked in to her eyes, " Renesmee," I whispered, " before tonight i thought i had seen some beautiful things. Until i looked at you just now. There can be nothing in the world more exceptional than you are right now. To say you look stunning, beautiful, would be an insult to how you look tonight. You took my breath away."

She looked down shyly, a blush rising in her cheeks. My fingers caught her chin and lifted her face back up to meet my eyes. I stroked my fingers along her cheek, then placed both hands gently on either side of her face. I stared in to her eyes for one more long second and my heart thumped loudly in synchronization with hers. She closed her eyes, and sighed slightly before opening them again to stare in to my face. She placed her hands over mine as i leaned down to softly press my lips to hers. . .

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	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Renesmee

I Know Jacob has always been around, He's always been in my family. But recently i began to see him differently. From when i was very young, i had known all about the whole, complicated werewolf- imprinting thing. Jacob and the rest of my family had explained it carefully to me, so i understood the intensity of it. I remember him telling me that from the moment he imprinted on me, Jake felt that he was bound to me, held with invisible chains. It was a strange thing, Something that no-one could fully explain. What was even more strange was that, although there was no freaky, invisible Quileute bond holding me to him, i was tied to Jacob anyway. It wasn't something that could be controlled, i wanted to be bound to him, too.

Tonight was my eighteenth birthday party and I had planned this, thought and re-thought how to make it perfect. I had decided i was going to speak with Jacob at some point today, talk to him like an adult and tell him what i wanted. It was more difficult than i thought to say the words to Jacob that i wanted to say. We had spent all day together hunting before the party, but i hadn't plucked up the courage.

But, now, as we stood in my Aunt Alice and Uncle Jasper's bedroom with Jacob staring in to my eyes, I forgot all my worries. Jacob's huge hands gently cupped my face as he pressed his soft lips to mine. Once, twice and a third time. I felt my body draw itself towards him, crushing myself in to him. I leaned my head back with my eyes closed and sighed with deep satisfaction.

"Wow, Jake." I smiled, opening my eyes to stare in to his.

However, the look in his eyes startled me, " What, Jake? What's wrong?" I asked, a little scared.

"I. . . I'm so sorry Ness. I don't. . . I don't know why i done that. I'm so, so sorry." He whispered, bringing his hands up to his face to cover his eyes. He started shaking his head.

"What? Jacob. . . What are you talking about?" I asked him, trying to pry his hands away from his face.

He took a deep breath and finally moved his hands to place them on my shoulders. He stared deep in to my eyes, searching for something. I looked back at him with a look of confusion and he suddenly burst out in to loud guffaws.

"I'm sorry Nessie. . .Your face! Oh god, I'm sorry." He chortled, pulling me back into his arms and holding me tight.

"Jacob! I really don't think this is funny! What is with you?" I demanded.

He took another deep breath, " You know, your dad is going to kill me for this! And probably the rest of your family too. I've been trying to keep these feelings locked up inside me for almost a year. I thought it might upset everyone, including you, you know? So, i thought, maybe if i try not to think about it, which i didn't in front of Edward, that it would go away. But i can't make it go away, Ness. To be honest, i never believed it would turn out this way. To me, you've always been, like, a best friend, the very best. But now, it's like you're my best friend who I've fallen in love with, and who I guess I always knew I would." He explained.

"Like you and Momma used to be, you mean?" I asked, a little disappointed at his explanation.

"No!" He burst out, sounding wounded, "No, it's not like that at all. I thought you understood the whole thing between me and your mom? It was you who was keeping me tied to her. You know this, Ness. At the time, yeah, i thought that the hold Bella had on me was because her and I were meant to be together. But then you were born, and the first moment i saw you i realized i was wrong. The reason i was so attached to your mom, the reason i was so desperately in love with her was because she was carrying you! It was you, inside of her, that held me here," He smiled at me,

"I knew, the first moment i set eyes on you, that you were the reason your mom and I belonged together. As family, because of you, not as husband and wife. I know now that I'm here for you, in what ever way you want me. I am on this earth because of you." He finished simply.

I blinked stupidly at him for a second, trying to take this all in, "So, then why did you apologize just now?"

" I thought you might be mad at me. . . I wasn't sure if you saw me that way or if i had just ruined everything. . . I don't know." He mumbled.

"Jake, we both knew that this was always going to turn out this way. It was just a question of when. My dad won't kill you. . . Aunt Rosalie might though." I winked at him and he chuckled.

"Yeah, she's deffinatly not going to be happy." He grinned and took both my hands in his.

"So. . . What now?" He asked

"Well," I sighed, " Brace yourself, Jacob. We have to go talk to mom" I looked at him seriously and a genuine look of fear spread across his handsome face.

"Don't panic, Jake. You know Aunt Alice seen this coming. She must have prepared them all. . . I hope." I added, a little apprehensive.

"You're right Nessie, I told them," We spun round to see my Aunt Alice leaning against the door frame. She smiled at me, "Don't worry, I think it's going to be ok. Although, Jacob, maybe you should stay clear of Rose for a bit. She's kind of thirsting for your blood just now." She made a face.

Jacob took a deep breath, "Yeah, stay clear of the angry vampire, got it." He flashed me a small smile, "C'mon Ness. Lets go meet the firing squad."

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Going downstairs was harder than i thought. In a second, every reaction my family could possibly have flashed through my mind. I kept my eyes on my feet as we slowly walked, Jacob and I holding tightly to each others hand. Aunt Alice danced down in front of us with a child-like grin on her face. I was suddenly terrified. My family must have been expecting this as much as Jacob and I were, but I still wasn't sure how they felt about it. My Mom and Dad had eventually began to tolerate the situation and had welcomed Jacob in to our home.

"He is one of the family, Renesmee," My Dad had reassured me, when I questioned his motives, "I thought you would be happy to have Jacob stay here?"

I was, more than happy. He was always in the big house anyway, I suppose it made sense for him to have all his things there too. The only one who wasn't particularly happy about it was Aunt Rose. Her and Jacob had never gotten along. With them, i think it was always going to be Vampire and Werewolf, never Rosalie and Jacob. It was something i could never understand. To me, they were both wonderful. Aunt Rose had taught me, when i was young, to fix up cars, and Jacob was great with them too, so i thought they would get along, at least since they had something in common. But they never did. This worried me now. I didn't want to upset anyone, but i loved Jacob. I couldn't do anything about that. It was the way of the universe, my Grandpa Carlisle had once told me. It was inevitable, meant to be. And, i never questioned him.

When Jacob and i entered the front room i heard a small snarl.

"Enough, Rose." My dad warned her.

"I don't like it, Edward. Renesmee and this. . . Dog? It's not right!" Aunt Rose snapped back at him.

"This isn't our choice, Rosalie. You always knew this would happen. So, let it happen." My dad replied, calmly. She growled quietly back at him once more.

I looked up from mine and Jacob's intertwined fingers in to my father's face. There was no stress there. He smiled warmly at me. It had always amazed me how handsome my dad was. Of course, part of being a vampire was being beautiful, But in all my life i had never seen anyone to compare to him. Except maybe Momma. She was exceptionally beautiful. Daddy told me that she always has been, even when she was human, but she argues with him. When Momma was human, she told me, she was clumsy and awkward. I could never imagine it. Both momma and daddy had always seemed like the most perfect, beautiful creatures ever.

It was easy to see the love between them, too. You only had to look at them to see that they were made to be together. When i was younger, i used to peak out of my bedroom door, just to watch them. Sometimes they would dance to quiet, tinkling music, sometimes they would just sit and look in to each others eyes. To see them, was to see true love. I wanted love like that. I hoped and prayed for it. And, now, it seemed, it had came to me.

"Hi, Daddy." I greeted him with a shy smile.

He beamed back at me, "Nessie! You look wonderful! Beyond that. You might be the most beautiful thing I've ever seen!"

I blushed, "Thanks, dad. You look very handsome." He chuckled at my embarrassment.

I turned to my mother, " Wow, Momma! You look. . . fantastic!" Her simple silver, floor length gown was silky and gorgeous. She looked absolutely stunning.

"Doesn't she look amazing, Jake?" I turned to him.

"Yeah. You really are something, Bells" He gave her a small smile.

"You don't look so bad yourself, Jacob. You too, Ness." She winked at us both.

Phew. I thought this was going to be difficult. Now all we had to do was get through the rest of the party, then Jacob and I could be alone with my family. We had to talk this through, whether some of them liked it or not. I turned to see my Aunt Rose scowling at Jacob, a slight pout on her face. I looked around at my family, and she was the only one who's face didn't hold a grin. My heart slowed down just a little.

"Here they come. . ." Daddy told us suddenly, and the doorbell chimed a few seconds later.

I took a deep breath and, keeping a tight hold on Jacob's hand, turned towards the front door. My family took their places.

Uncle Emmett walked past us to stand at the entrance with Aunt Rose, "Looking good, kid." He said, winking at me and punching Jake lightly on the arm. Aunt Rose shot me a small smile then her scowl returned as she looked at Jacob. We ignored her.

"Here goes." Jacob whispered as we walked quickly, to let in the first of what i hoped would be many guests.

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The party was going great, thankfully. Everyone seemed to be having a great time, including my family. Numerous people had stopped to tell me how good i looked, how beautiful my brother, Edward and his wife, Bella were. This was the pretense we had to keep. My mom and I looked the same age, so to blend in anywhere, in front of people, we had to pretend to be sisters. Which made Grandpa Carlisle and Grandma Esme my mom and dad. It wasn't hard to pretend. Everyone in Forks knew the story of the Cullens. It was easier to have them beleive that we had all been adopted by Dr. and Mrs. Cullen. Myself being the newest addition. It stopped any awkward questions, which was fine with me.

After about an hour, and after i had done a lap of all the guests, I went off to look for Jacob. I found him at the buffet table, naturally. He was explaining to Uncle Emmett what chili fries tasted like. Uncle Emmett complained that there weren't such a thing as those when he last ate human food. He looked genuinely disappointed and his face made me giggle. My Uncle Emmett is hilarious, very child-like, in an endearing way. He's the strongest person I know, including Jacob and my dad. I've seen him run head first in to giant trees, to make them fold, just to make me laugh. I love to spend time with him, he has an endless stream of jokes and pranks. Jacob and him get on really well, which infuriates my Aunt Rose. Right now, Jake and Uncle Emmett were throwing food at each other. Very dignified. I cleared my throat and they stopped to look at me. Both of their faces broke in to a grin. Uncle Emmett lobbed a piece of sandwich at me but I ducked and it hit Uncle Jasper on the back of the head. He turned round slowly and Uncle Emmett pointed at Jacob. I laughed at them. Silly boys.

"What's up, kiddo? You having fun?" Uncle Emmett asked me, avoiding two punches as both Jacob and Uncle Jasper swung for him.

"Yeah, it's great. It's going well, isn't it? People are having fun?" I asked a little nervously, looking around.

"Deffinatly" Jacob grinned at me.

I nodded, smiling at my friends, "Jacob, can i talk with you please?" I asked him.

"Um. . . Sure." He replied.

He took my hand and we walked past my Uncles, who were now laughing at some of the other kids' dancing. We went out the back door in to the fresh air and i took a deep breath.

"Everything alright, Ness?" Jacob asked.

"Yeah. Everything's perfect. I just wanted to spend some time with you alone before i get accosted again." I chuckled.

We sat down on one of the rought iron benches in the back yard and i sighed, leaning my head on Jacob's shoulder. This was the perfect night. The weather was warm, considering it was always cold and raining in Forks, and especially considering it was November. Jacob and I sat in silence for a few minutes, just gazing up at the stars. He held my hand, lightly tracing his fingers across my palm. I didn't think I could have been any happier.

"So. . . I have something for you." Jacob said, his voice sounding nervous.

"Ooh, presents, gimme." I turned towards him with my hands out, grinning.

He smiled back at me, " You can have it in a second, i have something to say first."

He swallowed hard and took a deep breath, " Nessie. . . I've been carrying this around with me for ages, praying for the chance to give it to you. I figured tonight's the perfect time, so. . . here goes.■

He looked so cute, " What's up, Jake? You're sweating." I giggled at him.

He pulled me on to my feet and stood in front of me, holding both my hands, " I love you Ness. More than my own life, more than you could ever know. . ." He took something out of his pocket and suddenly slipped down on to his left knee.

"Jacob!" I gasped, "What. . .?" He didn't let me finish.

"Renesmee, I want you in my life, in my heart, always. I promise i will keep you there, forever safe, forever mine. . . Will you marry me?" He asked, in a whisper, looking deep in to my eyes.

I stared down at him as he opened the small ring box he held in his right hand. He took out the ring and held it up to me. I gasped. It had one solitary, round diamond perched high on a thin silver band. Simple, but so very, very beautiful. Engraved on the inside of the band were the sweet words he had just whispered to me, "Forever mine." It was perfect.

I put my left hand on his cheek and breathed, "Yes. Of course I'll marry you, Jacob."

He smiled hugely and gently slid the ring on to my finger then stood, taking both my hands back in to his. Jacob had never looked more handsome to me than he did now. I freed one hand to wipe away the sole tear, slowly running down his cheek, then wrapped my arm around his neck. I rested my cheek against his and whispered my promise softly in to his ear,

"Always and forever."

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	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three: Jacob

As we walked back to the house, I could feel the nerves building. How do I tell Bella that I'd just proposed to her daughter? She was going to hit the roof. Which would really do more damage to the structure of the house than it would to her. I looked over at Nessie to see if she mirrored my feeling of fear, but I seen only peace. She looked more than happy.

"How'd you feel, Ness?" I asked her.

"I. . . I don't know how to describe it. I feel that I'm going to burst with so many different emotions." She replied, giggling.

She sighed contentedly, then stopped dead.

"What? What is it?" I asked her, anxiously looking around.

"Mom. . ." She whispered, pointing to the back door.

I turned to look at the door to see Bella, standing with Edward and Alice, staring out at us with angry faces. Alice looking a little guilty. I gulped and took a breath.

"Let's go face it, Ness" I said to her, squeezing her hand once.

We walked over to our family, and braced ourselves, stopping about 3 feet away. I saw Bella take a deep breath and heard Edward whisper to her,

"Stay calm, love." He wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Renesmee, Jacob" Bella said quietly, " Come into the house please. Now."

Nessie risked a quick glance at me and walked towards her mother. Her body was tense, her eyes worried. When we entered the house, Nessie was greeted again by her friends, telling her how much fun they were having. She smiled warmly and thanked them all. Going upstairs we were followed by Blondie, Jasper Carlisle, Esme and Emmett. Wow, the whole team were coming. This was going to be bad.

Bella led us all into Carlisle and Esme's suit and closed to door behind us. She took another deep breath before starting,

"Jacob. . .Please explain to me what you think you were doing asking my daughter to marry you?" She asked, her voice shaking slightly.

"Bells, now, don't over-react or anything. You know I love her. Surely you must have known that this might happen when I imprinted on her in the first place. What did you think we were going to do when you found out we were together? Live in sin? I didn't think you would like that much better." I tried a small smile. She growled at me.

"Don't be smart with me, Jacob. I'm really trying hard not to rip out your throat right now." She snarled.

A deep voice from the back of the small crowd surprised me,

"Bella," Emmett started carefully, "Be reasonable about this, ok? Jake's right. You must've guessed this would happen all those years ago. That's what this whole imprinting thing's about isn't it? So, I think we should hear the kid out before you tear him to pieces, yeah?"

Bella glared at Emmett but seemed to simmer down just a little at his words.

"Ok, fine," She huffed out her breath, "Renesmee? Is this what you want? You are absolutely sure about. . . .Jacob?" She spit my name like it was burning her mouth. Ouch, that hurt.

"Positive, Momma. You know how much I love Jacob. He's all I've ever wanted, I see that now. This is the way my life was supposed to be." She replied, sounding so sure I couldn't help but grin down at her.

She squeezed my hand reassuringly. She brought her other hand up to touch my face so that she could tell me in her special way,

"Don't worry, Jake. She'll be ok. She loves you too. She knows that there's no one better for me. I know how much she loves daddy, so I know she can understand this." She smiled up at me.

"Wow, she's beautiful," I thought, staring in to her eyes " It must be wrong to want to kiss someone so much, when her mom's considering making me vampire feed."

"Easy now, Jacob" Edward growled at me.

Oops, I forgot about him. I smiled apologetically at him. I looked around at the rest of them. The only one who looked truly angry was Rose. Well, I guess I'll stay out of her way just now. I can't be bothered to fight with her. Although it takes no time at all, healing broken bones is a pain. I looked away from Rosalie, back to Bella. She seemed to have calmed down.

"Bella. Seriously, you know me. You know how much I love Ness. I would never, ever hurt her. This has maybe happened before you wanted it to, but it was always going to be this way. I hope you're ok with it, I really do." She didn't reply so I went on,

"Ok, look, you know the way you feel about Edward, how you say you have to love him? How there's no other way for you to exist? Well. . . I finally get that, Bells. Since I imprinted, you know that I can't bear to be away from Nessie. When she was younger, I loved her the way I was supposed to. You know that. But she's eighteen now. I can't stop this, Bella. I have to be with her. I can't live any other way." I finished, a pleading tone in my voice.

Bella closed her eyes, squeezing her fingers to her temples as if trying to arrange her thoughts,

"Ok, Jacob. Fine. I get that things have to be this way. But, you're right, I really wish it had happened after a millennium or two. I will support this, but know, Jacob, that I'll be watching you." She threatened.

I couldn't help but grin at her and a small, reluctant smile flashed on her face too.

"Thanks, Bells." I could think of nothing more to say.

Alice cleared her throat from beside Edward, "So, we're ok? Everyone's fine? Now, can we go? There's a party going on downstairs!" She grinned, jumping on the spot.

Edward laughed at her, "Ok, Alice, you're right. Come on, Ness, this is your birthday party!" He said, grinning at Nessie.

He pulled Bella by the elbow and led her out of the room with everyone following behind them. Nessie and I breathed out together. I pulled her into my arms and sighed.

"You see, Jake? I told you they would be ok with this. No problem at all." She shrugged.

"Yeah, piece of cake." I mumbled back at her.

She laughed once and pulled back to look in to my face, "Right. Now, lets party!"

She took my hand and danced out of the room, towing me with her. As we walked downstairs we could hear that everything was quiet and see that everything was dark. Nessie paused.

"What's going on?" She whispered to me. I just shrugged, I hadn't a clue.

Suddenly the lights came on, bright and disorientating. We could see everyone staring up at us, their happy faces showing us how good this party was. They all burst in to a verse of happy birthday and Nessie beamed.

"C'mon Ness, present time!" Edward called to her when the song was over.

"Ooh!" Nessie squealed, clapping her hands together.

Edward, Bella and the rest of the family started for the front door so Nessie and I followed. They walked outside, down the steps and around to the garage. Nessie looked at me, puzzled. We walked quickly after them, following them in to the huge garage. Next to Edwards Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, wearing a plush, over-sized pink satin bow and a huge tag reading, "Happy Birthday, Renesmee!" sat a brand new Mazda MX5 sports car. It was shiny, deep red with black leather interior. It was beautiful. Nessie gasped beside me, but I couldn't take my eyes off the car to look at her. So subtle and sleek, this car suited her perfectly. Not overly extravagant like most of the Cullen's cars. Nessie stood, frozen to the spot, speechless for a minute. Then suddenly she jumped up once before sprinting towards her family and throwing her arms around as many of them as she could reach.

"Thank you, thank you! It's perfect, I love it! Thank you!" She squealed at them.

They laughed at her exuberance and told her she was welcome, all of them wishing her a happy birthday again. She turned to me with a huge grin on her face,

"Can you believe this, Jake?" She almost shouted with excitement.

I smiled widely back at her, "It's perfect for you, Ness."

She ran over and circled her arm around my waist and looked back at her gift.

"Isn't it pretty?" She sighed.

"Beautiful. Like I said, it's perfect for you."

Nessie tilted her head up to look at me and leaned up to kiss me once before sighing happily and resting her head on my chest. I squeezed her tightly and kissed her head. I stroked one hand gently down her cheek and whispered in her ear,

"Happy birthday, Ness"

As we walked back to the house, Nessie babbled at one hundred miles an hour about anything and everything. She gushed over her pretty new car and thanked her family over and over again. When we returned to the party, we were greeted again by her friends. They pulled her in to the middle of the room, which was now the dance floor, and she twirled and laughed along happily with them. The family watched her for a second then separated. Bella and Edward walked hand in hand to sit on one of the benches outside the back door. Alice, Jasper, Rose and Emmett followed Nessie on to the dance floor, the five of them looking like trained professionals. Carlisle clapped me on the shoulder before he and Esme walked around the room to stand at the other side and watch the dancing. I stood on my own, watching Nessie and her friends laughing and singing along to the music. This was a great night. I was glad for Ness, that everything had gone so well for her. I heard Nessie yell from the middle of the crowd,

"Hey! Come on you four! Get over here!" She waved over to Bella, Edward, Carlisle and Esme.

They laughed and glided over to join in the dancing. I chuckled at them, tapping my foot along with the music. I turned to look out of the window and sighed.

"All right, Jake?" I heard.

I looked down at Nessie and she wrapped her arms around my waist. I held her tight and replied,

"Yeah, great. I was just thinking how beautiful it is tonight. It really is a great party, Ness."

"I know, I'm having so much fun! It would be better if you weren't standing over here on your own though. Come on. Come dance with us!" She pleaded.

I laughed and kissed her once,

"Ok, it's your party, so I'll dance with you. If you don't mind me stomping all over your feet."

"I think I'll be ok." She chuckled.

I took her hand and began walking to the dance floor.

"Wait, Jake. I want to say something first. . ." She pulled me back to wrap her arms back around my waist and looked into my eyes.

"I just wanted to say thank you, Jacob. This is the best eighteenth birthday anyone ever had."

I grinned at her, " Any time."

She slid her hands up to snake around my neck, pulling herself up to touch her lips to mine. She moaned quietly as she kissed me, more hungrily than before. Her hands twined into my hair, my own pulling her closer to me. The bare skin on her back burned under my touch as I lifted her off her feet. She giggled against my lips as I spun her around before placing her back onto her feet. Her lips never left mine. She kissed me quickly a few more times then unwound her hands from around my neck and twisted her fingers through mine.

"Ok, wolf man," She said, grinning at me, "Lets boogie!"

---------------------- ------------------------

"They're all still talking about it, you know." Nessie told me one day, two weeks after her party.

We were lying on the sofa in the empty big house, my arms wrapped around her.

"For days, everyone was still asking me about you, too." She said quietly.

"Oh, yeah? And what did you tell them?" I asked her, a smile in my voice.

"I told them you were my. . . Fiancé." She replied, giggling.

"Wow, do I love to hear you say that." I sighed.

"They were asking me if I had thought about the wedding, if I had made any plans yet," She started, "Of course, I told them we haven't even discussed it yet. . ." She paused, "But, actually, I was wondering. . . Why?"

"Why, what?" I asked.

"Why we haven't discussed it. Don't you want to talk about it yet?" She whispered, her voice sounding a little upset.

"Yeah, course I do. You hadn't mentioned it, so I thought you might have needed some time to get your head around it." I told her.

"I wanted to talk about it the next day. I can't wait!" I said, laughing.

"Oh," She said, sounding relieved, " I can't wait either! I've been trying hard not to talk about it, 'cause I thought you might need some time!" She laughed with me.

"Well," I said, sitting up and turning her to face me, "Let's talk about it."

She grinned at me. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say a word, Alice burst through the front door.

"Oh no you don't!" She growled, " Not without me! I've been waiting for two whole weeks for one of you to mention this, so don't you dare leave me out!"

Nessie and I looked at each other and laughed. Nessie stood and walked over to Alice, leading her by the hand back to the sofa.

"Aunt Alice, don't be silly," She said soothingly, " We couldn't exactly plan our wedding without our wedding planner, now could we?" She grinned at Alice.

"Yay!" Alice cheered, clapping her hands together. She folded herself onto the floor, crossing her legs.

I shook my head at them, chuckling.

Alice snapped her head up to look at me, "Ok, Jacob, out. Go play with Bella, she's out hunting with Edward and Jazz. You can't be here for this."

"What? Alice. . ." I started to protest. Alice interrupted me.

"Jacob, just do as I ask! Nessie and I need to talk about her dress." She turned to grin at Nessie.

"Oh, come on! Why do I have to leave just because you're talking about a dress? Ness. . .help me out here?" I asked her.

"Sorry, Jake. Aunt Alice is right, you are not allowed to know anything about my dress," She replied, pulling me to my feet, "Now, Get!"

She shoved me towards the back door. I turned back to look at them, my bottom lip slipping into a pout.

Nessie looked at me and laughed, walking back towards me, "Please?" She whispered, her arms winding around my waist, "It won't take long. Go hunt. Have fun. I love you." She kissed me softly once.

I rolled my eyes at her, "Ok, fine. I will have fun. Lots of it!" I looked around Nessie to stick my tongue out at Alice. She stuck hers back out at me.

"I love you, too." I told Nessie, kissing her again.

"Ok, Ok, we get it, you love each other. Very nice. Now, go, Jacob! Do not make me chase you out!" Alice barked from the floor.

"All right, Alice, I'm going! Take it easy. See you later, Ness." I mumbled.

Once out the back door, I turned to look back at them. They were sitting on the floor, both crossed legged, facing each other, talking at one hundred miles an hour. I smiled at them, glad Nessie was happy.

"Uch, what's the smell. . ?" I heard Edward mutter from the woods, "Oh, hey, Jake." He grinned at me.

"Yeah, funny," I said, running to meet them, punching Edward lightly on the arm.

"What's up, Jake? Where's Ness?" Bella asked.

"She and Alice are in the house talking wedding dresses." I made a face, "They kicked me out." I moaned.

"Ah, Alice," She, Edward and Jasper said together, laughing, as if it were an explanation.

"Don't fight her, Jake, you won't win. Alice is relentlace." Jasper said fondly. This was obviously a quality he found endearing in his mate.

"Yeah, remember when she done our wedding, Edward? What a monster she was. We weren't allowed to even think about it if she wasn't there." Bella shuddered slightly, but grinned.

"Yes, Alice is nothing if not thorough. Unless you want to be in her bad books for the next fifty years, just give her free reign. It's far easier." Edward said, laughing.

I looked back at the house and groaned.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. I do not want to get on the wrong side of two woman talking about clothes. I might just leave them to it." I said.

They laughed again.

"Come on, Jake," Bella said, linking her arm through mine, "Let's hunt. I'll race you " She winked at me.

"Oh, please Bells! You beat me every time! Why do you want to continue to humiliate me?" I moaned.

"Because, it's fun. . . For me at least." She grinned, then crouched before taking off at a sprint.

"Let's go, Jake." Edward said, laughing.

I took one glance back at the house and sighed before following them. I was already shaking, ready to phase, before we hit the river.

---------------------- ------------------------

Almost every conversation we had over the next month was about the wedding. Jasper was right, Alice was like a woman possessed. Part of me was kind of thankful that she was there though, to make tough decisions that Nessie and I couldn't or didn't want to make. All I really cared about was that Nessie would be my wife. Ness wanted our wedding to be like Edward and Bella's which meant, of course, it would be in the house, with just a small gathering of our friends and family. Everyone was excited about it and every five minutes or so, someone was coming up with a new idea. Jasper suggested that we should have the whole wedding outside by the river. We decided against that because it was December and it was absolutely freezing outside. Which wouldn't affect us so much, but Nessie didn't much like the idea of her friends catching hypothermia at her wedding. So the wedding would be indoors, by the big glass wall at the back of the house. The party would be outside though, like Bella and Edwards, inside a huge white tent. Emmett, stupidly, thought we should have my pack outside the wall, phasing back and forward,

"I mean, it's not like anyone would figure out what they really were!" He explained, grinning, "They would probably all just think it was some sort of illusion. Well, except for Charlie and Sue. Oh, and Billy and Renee and Phil and. . ."

He stopped when he noticed Alice snarling at him, her teeth bared.

"Ok, just a thought" he mumbled, back peddling.

So, we decided, thankfully, not to go with the phasing werewolves. One idea that Alice did approve was Esme's idea for the flowers,

"I know Nessie wanted her wedding to be the same as Bella and Edwards, but there has to be differences somewhere. You should have your favorite everything, Ness. So, I think we should have star gazer lilies as your bouquet? They're so beautiful and you do love them." She had explained, smiling fondly at Nessie.

Ness grinned back at Esme, " Great idea, Grandma."

So, we had decided on the flowers, the music, the decorations and the girls had chosen their dresses. Nessie had decided that she wanted Bella to be her made of honor, and that meant, of course, that Alice and Rosalie would be her bridesmaids. I had asked Edward to be my best man and he told me he would be happy to do it. I was glad, but Emmett huffed slightly about it. I did feel kinda bad, but he would get over it. After Alice had sorted out the girls, she started on us. She had every man in the house standing poker straight while she pinned and tucked. I was the only one who complained.

"Aw, Alice, please!" I moaned at her during the forth tux fitting, "Just leave me alone! It looks fine!"

"Jacob, stop whining! This will take half as long if you just stand still!" She snapped back at me.

Truthfully, I couldn't wait for all the planning to be over and for the day to finally be here. The date was set for December 27th, which now, was only five days away. At the time, Alice had complained that it was too soon, she couldn't possibly get everything organized in that short of a time.

"Aunt Alice, please? It's a whole month away! You can do it, you can do anything." Nessie had pleaded, trying flattery to get her way.

"Humph," Alice had huffed, "Well, I suppose, for you, I could do it. Why's that date so important anyway?"

"Well, it was Jake's Mom and Dad's anniversary. We thought it would be nice, since she wouldn't be here, you know?" Nessie had explained, turning to stroke her fingers gently down my cheek and smile sweetly at me.

"Oh, well, yeah, ok. I guess that is kind of sweet actually." Alice had said, I think feeling a little guilty at making such a big deal about it, " December 27th it is then."

Alice stalked away, mumbling about having too much to do, yelling at Bella and Esme to come help her. Nessie grinned at me. Alice would do anything for Nessie, and she was a sucker for romance. Having the wedding on my mom and dad's anniversary was Nessie's idea. She said she wanted everyone we loved to be a part of this day, and so now, my mom would be too. I loved her all the more for it, if that were even possible.

Now, though, everything was set. Only Alice still looked stressed all the time. The talk between Jasper and Emmett had turned to my bachelor party.

"We could do what we done for Edward's, I suppose," Jasper had suggested, " We went hunting. It was actually a lot of fun." He explained to me.

"Yeah, we could do," Emmett agreed, " But how about we go further a field?" He asked, grinning hugely.

I looked from one to the other of them, slightly apprehensive.

"Ok, hunting's good. But I don't want to go too far. It makes me anxious to be too far away from Ness." I told them.

"Right, well, I guess Canada's out of the question then?" Emmett joked.

"Yeah, I think so." I laughed.

"How about Seattle, then?" Jasper asked. " I hear they have some pretty fierce grizzlies in their woods, Em."

"Excellent!" Emmett enthused, " Seattle it is!"

So, we all, Jasper, Emmett, Edward, Carlisle and myself, would go to Seattle. My pack weren't coming with us. They decided that this was a "vampire only" affair. What exactly was I then? I tried to be enthusiastic about it, and hunting wild bears would be fun. Although, actually, I would have rather stayed at home with Nessie, but Emmett wouldn't have it.

"No, Jake. You're not staying home. We're going to Seattle to fight with angry bears, and you will enjoy yourself!" He almost yelled at me.

I didn't argue with him. Instead, three days before the wedding, when it was time to go, I hugged my family and kissed Nessie until Edward cleared his throat. I waved her goodbye until she was out of sight.

In the car, the talk was all about hunting at first. Emmett's favorite thing to hunt was grizzlies, so he was extremely excited. After that, we spent about twenty minutes listening to Jasper tell a hilarious story about Emmett wrestling with a giant lion in the woods outside one of their old houses about thirty years ago. I hadn't realized that Jasper could be so funny, even after all this time. I was still laughing when, after we had been driving for about forty minutes, Emmett said,

"All right. Here's where we start on foot." He grinned hugely.

Although Emmett loved his giant jeeps, he liked nothing more than running. I had to admit that I felt the same way. There really was nothing like it. So, now, as we all ran through the woods, Edward and Emmett racing each other, I couldn't help but laugh. They were right, this was fun. And I really was looking forward to those grizzlies. Jasper knew exactly where to go to find the best and angriest bears so we followed him. After we had been running for about fifteen minutes, though, he stopped abruptly and we all skidded past him.

"Jasper?" Carlisle called back to him. Jaspers eyes were huge, his nostrils flared.

"Don't you smell that?" He whispered back.

Everyone sniffed the air, searching for what had Jasper so anxious. Edward caught it first and growled followed by Carlisle and Emmett.

They all looked at each other, their faces terrified and angry at the same time.

"No!" Edward snarled, " No! This can't be happening! What are they doing here?"

Who? Who's here? I thought, looking around at everyone. Edward? What is it?

He ignored me and a quiet whine slipped between my teeth.

"How long ago?" Carlisle asked Edward

"Not long. Maybe an hour." He replied, sniffing again. "They went back that way." He said in a strained voice, pointing to the direction we had just come.

"What?! Tell me they are not heading back to forks?!" Emmett hissed.

"Yes, I think they are." Edward choked back.

"No. . . They can't be." Carlisle breathed.

"Why?! What could they possibly want? Why didn't Alice see them coming?" Jasper asked desperately.

"I don't know, Jazz. Maybe they found a way around her?" Edward replied, uncertain.

Ok, Edward, seriously, will someone please tell me what you guys are talking about! I thought, annoyed now.

"Just a minute, please, Jacob!" He snapped back at me.

"How many do you think?" Emmett asked

Carlisle walked back, a little way past Jasper and sniffed, " Three, maybe four. . ." He paused, "The ancients." He finished, his voice laced with fear.

The ancients? Wait, that can't be right. Aren't the ancients. . ?

"Yes, Jacob," Edward interrupted my thought in a whisper, "The Volturi."

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	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four: Renesmee

Since the boy's had gone, the rest of us decided to go hunting ourselves, but we stayed closer to home. Mom and I were following a herd of elk along the river. We could hear Aunt Alice, Grandma and Aunt Rose on the other side, giggling and joking.

"Nervous, Ness?" Momma asked me.

"No. I thought I would be, because you're supposed to be, right?" I replied, laughing, " But, I'm not. I know I'm meant to be with Jake, so it's the easiest thing ever."

I believed that, too. I knew this was the way my life was meant to be. I was supposed to marry Jacob and we were supposed to be together, forever. It was as simple as that. What I was a little apprehensive about though, was the wedding guests. The more I thought about that many vampires and werewolves in the one room, the more I thought of that could go wrong. Of course, all of the vampire's that would be there were 'vegetarians' and had all met Jacob's pack before, but still, you never know. I had a vision in my head just now of one of the younger wolves in Jacob's pack doing something to irritate one of the Denali's, maybe, and it turning into a fight. I shuddered slightly at the thought.

"It's hard for you when he's not close by." My mom stated, misinterpreting my sudden anxiousness.

"Yes, it is," I said truthfully, "I feel as if I'm not whole when Jacob's not here."

"I know what you mean," She replied, "I feel as if something's missing when your father's gone. It has always been that way. Which is why he never goes away." She finished, laughing quietly.

"I hope Jacob and I are as happy as you and daddy are, Momma." I told her, "I don't think I've ever seen two people so much in love. Including Aunt Rose and Uncle Emmett!"

Momma chuckled, "Your Aunt Rose and Uncle Emmett weren't always so. . . Reserved. It was almost nauseating to watch sometimes. They calmed down a lot after you were born. We didn't think it was quite appropriate to have them gushing all over each other with a child in the house." She grinned at me.

"What about Aunt Alice and Uncle Jasper?" I asked, "They are a strange couple. . . In a very nice way I mean" I laughed once, struggling to convey what I meant.

Momma understood anyway, "Yeah, Alice and Jazz are different. They are very much in love, though. They just have a very subtle way of showing it. It's the little things that make you see how much they adore each other, you know?"

"Like what?" I asked

"Well," Momma said, smiling widely at my interest, "Things like, the way they look at each other. I've seen them sit and stare into each other's eye's without speaking for hours. It's very sweet. Jasper is very protective of Alice, too. Although, he needn't be, she can certainly take care of herself." She laughed fondly.

"Daddy's very protective of her too. I think he likes her better than Aunt Rose," I whispered.

Momma grinned, "Yes it would appear that way. Your father and Aunt Rosalie have a very complicated story. They haven't always seen eye to eye about everything. He does love her though. But then, Rose and I haven't always been so close either." She told me.

"Why not?" I was surprised at this. Momma and Aunt Rose were great friends, truly sisters.

"Well, Rosalie never did appreciate my yearning to become a vampire. She struggled with immortality for a long time. So, she resented me slightly, when I was human, for my choice. It wasn't until I was carrying you that Rose and I really started to get along. You see, there was nothing she wanted more than children. So when you came along, she had the closest thing she could" She touched my cheek fondly, " You made everything better." She smiled at me.

I smiled back and sighed, "I like to hear about these things, Momma. It's strange to think that everyone has lived for so long before I was even born!"

"Yeah, they've been around forever." We laughed together.

Suddenly, Aunt Alice called to us from amongst the trees, "Come on, you two! You're missing all the good ones!"

"Ok, Ness. You ready? Let's hunt." She said, grinning.

Momma and I slunk into a crouch and, turning to look at each other once, we sprung over the river in one long bound.

On the other side, we ran towards Aunt Rose, Aunt Alice and Grandma, and arrived just in time to see Aunt Alice trapeze from a high branch. She landed with a quiet thud onto the neck of a huge Elk, grinning at us in triumph. Momma and I separated, each chasing our own prey. I could hear everyone else running and jumping, Momma squealing in delight. I had just finished with my second Elk when I heard Aunt Rose call to us. I ran, meeting the others in a clearing in the trees. Everyone listening intently, their nostrils flared, picking up the scent.

"Edward?" Momma whispered, the same time Aunt Rose whispered, " Emmett?"

"Why are they home?" Grandma asked no one in particular.

"Beats me." Aunt Alice mumbled.

We quickly glanced at each other, then took off at a sprint. We reached the house at the same time and burst through the door, to see the boys gathered in the sitting room, speaking quietly.

"Hey. What's going on? What are you doing back?" Momma asked Daddy, walking to him to kiss him lightly.

"Um. . . We just. . . Had enough." He lied, smiling at her.

"Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, do not lie to me!" Uhoh, full name threat. Momma folded her arms and looked sternly at him.

"Ok, love, I'm sorry. We did come back for a. . . Specific reason." He said, his body tensing.

"Yes, I thought as much. Spill." She told him.

"Right. . .Ok. . . Well. . . Jazz?" He stuttered, turning to look at Uncle Jasper. It wasn't like daddy to be so unsure at all.

"Jasper, tell us what's going on!" Aunt Alice yelled at him.

The whole time since we had come into the house, Jacob's eyes never left mine. His were desperate, terrified, mine were confused, but they mirrored his terror. He walked over and stood behind me, snaking his arms around my waist, and pressed his lips to my neck.

"We were in the woods and caught a scent," Uncle Jasper started, "It led back the way we had come, so we followed it. It led back into town, but we lost it at the clearing."

"Well, was it a scent you knew? Do you know who it was?" Grandma asked.

"Yes. We knew it well." Uncle Jasper replied.

We all looked at him, waiting for him to finish.

"Spit it out, Jasper!" Aunt Rosalie snapped at him after a minute.

"The Volturi." Uncle Jasper finished in a whisper.

Everyone was silent for a long moment, no one moving, no one breathing. Momma was the first to speak.

"Why?" She choked out.

"We don't know," Daddy replied, shaking his head.

"Why didn't I see this?" We heard Aunt Alice whisper.

We all turned to look at her.

"We don't know that, either." Daddy told her, "We wondered the same. We figure they must have finally figured out how to get past you." He ground his teeth.

"Well, what can we do?" Grandma asked, sounding horrified.

Speaking for the first time, Grandpa said, "We wait."

----------------------------------- ----------------------------------

The next few hours were unbearable. Although the last time I had met the Volturi ancients I was just a baby, I remembered them vividly. The memory of their strange red, misty eyes made me shudder. This was a new situation for everyone. When they came to us before, we had warning, Aunt Alice had seen them coming. My family had had a month to prepare. This time, though, we had no clue when they would appear. We just knew they were coming. Aunt Alice was still trying to see them, to give us an estimate on when they would reach us, but she couldn't see them at all. She was frustrated, this had never happened to her before. The only exception was Jacob and I. Aunt Alice realized a long time ago that she could see vampires best because she is one and she could see humans Ok because she was one. But 'Half- breeds' as she put it, like Jake and I, she couldn't see because we were nothing she had experienced before. She had gotten over that a long time ago though. The longer she was around us, the easier it became for her to see. So now, she could see us just as well as everybody else. Of course, now she was beginning to doubt herself again, the way she had at first with Jacob and I. She was wandering around the sitting room, her eyes focusing then hazing over every few seconds.

"Alice, don't torture yourself. You won't see them, it's too late. They're already here." Uncle Jasper told her in a whisper.

She ignored him, we could see that she didn't stop searching. Uncle Jasper sighed and shook his head. We had discussed what to do, but because we didn't know why they were here, we weren't exactly sure what we should be planning. All we could do was sit and wait for them to come to us. We daren't go anywhere, not wanting to separate, just incase they caught us vulnerable. So we all sat in the sitting room, just waiting. After everyone had worn out all their ideas and there was nothing more to say, we just sat in silence. Jacob never left my side, his eyes staring into mine. Momma and Daddy mirrored us. Grandma and Grandpa stood at the glass wall, holding hands, staring out at the night. Aunt Rose and Uncle Emmett sat on the floor by the sitting room door, occasionally turning to kiss tenderly, but otherwise, not moving. We had been waiting all night, I was almost asleep and Jacob was snoring rather loudly next to me. I was just dropping off when I heard a low snarl. Jacob shot up onto his feet at the almost silent sound, anxious even in sleep. I looked at Daddy to see him glaring out of the big glass wall, his teeth bared. We all turned in the same direction to see what he saw and a growl broke out from between another nine pairs of lips.

"Here come the cavalry" Uncle Emmet mumbled, a grim smile on his face.

We all stood up and walked slowly out the back door, into the back yard. Floating along the ground towards us were four distinctly familiar vampires. The three ancients, and, of course, Renata, Aro's personal guard.

"Ah, Carlisle, my dear friend, it appears you were expecting us." One of the shrouded figures said from the darkness.

"Aro, How nice to see you all again." Grandpa replied, his voice laced with tension and insincerity.

"And how wonderful to see you and your beautiful family again." Aro answered.

As the four vampires appeared out of the dense darkness, I finally saw their faces. They were exactly the same, of course. Their eyes still made me gasp slightly. Jacob tightened his arms around my waist. I heard Momma snarl quietly beside me and daddy whisper to her,

"It's all right, love. Stay calm." He stroked his fingers down her cheek gently.

As they glided towards us, though, we could see that there weren't just the four of them after all.

They must have split up. That's why grandpa only sensed four, I thought, They were hoping to catch us separated. A quiet growl slipped up my throat at the sight of the newcomers.

From the corner of my eye, I saw daddy nod once, ever so slightly, to confirm my thought. Behind the three ancients and Renata, moving silently to meet them, were the smallest but most dangerous of all the Volturi guard, Alec and Jane. As they lifted their heads, I caught sight of their faces and I gasped quietly. How could two beings, who were so lovely, be so deadly? My memories, although clear, had not done these twins justice. Their cherubic faces were absolutely exquisite. They looked like angelic children. As they approached, Aro and Marcus parted slightly to make room for them and Alec and Jane came to a stop in between them. I found that no matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't take my eyes away from Jane's face. She stared at my left though, where my father stood with momma, Aunt Alice and Uncle Jasper, all of them linked by a touching hand. Jane's lovely face suddenly broke into a mocking, almost evil sneer. She was enjoying my family's discomfort. From the sneer, her face transformed into a breathtaking smile, so sweet.

"Aro, Jane knows that attacking my wife won't work. Please, tell her to stop trying. Now." He growled the last word at Aro, but was looking at Jane, his teeth bared.

I tore my eyes away from Jane to see momma grinning at her. Momma's shield was stronger than it had been the last time the guard were here. She could control it completely now and It was almost totally impenetrable. For Aro, Jane and Alec, their mental gifts would not get through it. I looked around at my family and all of them were looking at their feet. Glancing down, I could see Alec's sensory deprivation mist trying to fight its way to us. It stabbed at every point of momma's shield, where each of us stood, trying to find a way under it. It never would. Momma looked back up to stare at Alec,

"That won't work either, Alec," She reminded him, grinning, "You will never get me that way."

Alec snarled in defiance but the fog drifted slowly away, until it was gone completely. Alec continued to stare at my mother, an aggravated grimace on his face.

"Peace, my dear ones," Aro said eventually, "Be calm."

"Aro, I do not mean to be rude," Grandpa started, "But what are you doing here?"

" We came to visit, dear Carlisle," Aro replied, sounding insulted, "We were in the area, so we just decided to drop by." He glanced at Aunt Alice who scowled at him.

"Well, that was very nice of you, Aro. But unfortunately, we have company coming soon for a family event. If you had given us notice of your arrival, we could have made plans to accommodate you." Grandpa said.

"Ahh, and what event would this be?" Aro sounded truly interested.

I spoke for the first time, "It is my wedding in a few days, Aro."

"Why, Renesmee. That cannot be you! How you've grown! So beautiful. You are definitely your mothers daughter." He smiled warmly at me.

"Thank you Aro, it's very kind of you to say so" I replied, nodding courteously.

"So, you're wedding you say, sweet Renesmee? Who is the lucky man?" He asked.

"That would be me." Jacob spoke, his voice gruff.

"Aren't you . . . the dog?" Caius asked, his tone disgusted. Jane snickered.

A growl rumbled in Jacob's chest, the same time a snarl ripped up my mothers throat.

"Now, now friends. We did not come here to cause any aggravation. Be nice, Caius. My apologies, dear Jacob." Aro amended, his hands raised towards us.

"What did you come for then, Aro? I'm sorry, but I do not believe you were just 'in the area'. Forks is a long way from Volterra." Daddy asked, sounding impatient.

"Forgive me, young Edward." Aro answered, nodding once, "It would appear I have not earned back your trust since our last visit. This saddens me." To some who did not know him as well, his voice may have sounded almost sincere.

"You came here the last time, with the intention of destroying my daughter, Aro. That is not something which is easily forgiven. Now, please, tell me, because you have all been careful not to think of it, why are you here this time? I know there is a purpose." Daddy retorted.

No one spoke for a long moment, but whatever one of the guard thought had daddy growling,

"I knew it!" He snarled.

"What is it?" Momma breathed.

Daddy hesitated. He glanced over at me before answering her in a whisper, " Renesmee."

Momma groaned and Grandma gasped quietly. Otherwise, there was no sound. I knew it, too. Why else would they be here? They had promised, all those years ago, that they would be back. They had to make sure that I wasn't dangerous, that I still posed no threat.

"Yes, dearest Edward," Caius sneered, " We have come to fulfill our promise to you. Evidently, you recall said promise?"

"Of course we do, Caius." Daddy choked out.

"So, I assume you have proof for us?" Caius asked.

Aro looked towards us expectantly.

"We do not have evidence to present to you right now, Aro." Grandpa told him quietly, "Given advanced warning, we would have had time to prepare."

"I have a suggestion," Marcus interjected, speaking for the first time.

Everyone turned to look at him. Uncle Emmett's expression almost laughable, as if he had forgotten Marcus was there.

"Share it with us, please Marcus." Aro asked him politely.

Daddy snarled again at his thought.

"Well," Marcus began, ignoring daddy, "Since we, very inconsiderately, did not give the Cullens time to prepare proof, we should stay to witness for ourselves."

No one replied, each of us trying to digest this. Since our family simply stared at him in silence, Marcus elaborated.

"Renesmee," He began, turning to me, " You said that you and you're. . . mate are to marry in a few days. How many days exactly? Keep in mind, I will know if you are lying." He told me.

"Three days." I whispered. Jacob ground his teeth.

"Then I propose we stay until then." He turned back to face the other ancients. "We can watch the way the girl interacts with humans, and our kind. Then we can decide for ourselves whether or not she poses any danger." He concluded.

"No. Aro, forgive me, but I must object." Grandpa said immediately, "There will be humans here! We cannot put them in so much danger. There must be another way."

"Easy, my friend. We would not dream of putting any of your loved ones in danger." Aro soothed.

Grandpa relaxed just a little, but daddy growled again.

"However," Aro continued, and Grandpa stiffened again, "It does seem like the best solution. Of course, we will not harm any of your guests." He chuckled, as if it were a joke.

"Aro," Daddy said, his voice tight, "Pardon me for stating the obvious, but you are vampires. You hunt. Humans! All of the vampires who will be here, are like us, Aro, they only hunt animals. So there was never going to be any harm in them mixing. We cannot have our friends and family around you, it is simply too dangerous."

"Edward, please, have a little faith. We have had experience with humans before," He laughed lightly, "You have my word. No harm will come to any of your friends." He smiled kindly at daddy, although it was transparently insincere.

"Aro," Grandpa whispered, "Please, are you sure there is no other way? If you just gave us a little time. . ."

"No, Carlisle," Caius cut him off bluntly, "This is how it has to be. There is no other way."

Grandpa's head drooped in defeat. How I hated to see that. It was so degrading! How dare he speak to him that way! I should rip his throat out and. . .

"Ness." Daddy warned in a whisper, his hand stretching out towards me. I gripped it and he squeezed my fingers gently.

"Excellent!" Aro enthused. "So, we will be here to share this wonderful day with you!" He smiled widely, looking around at each of us.

Every one of my family's faces mirrored mine of astonishment. Each of us stared at Aro, who was still grinning, unable to speak. So, the Volturi, the oldest, most powerful vampires would be at my wedding. With my human friends and my family. I shuddered and Jacob rubbed my arm soothingly.

"All right, then!" Aro said, clapping his hands together, acting as if he didn't notice our horrified expressions, "Where are we staying?"

----------------------------------- ----------------------------------

Momma and daddy decided that we should move into the main house and allow the Volturi guard to use our cottage as their base. That way, they were far enough away from the house, that any human visitors we had were not in any immediate danger from them. Of course, Marcus' solution made us all uneasy, but there seemed to be nothing we could do. However much I hated to admit it though, truthfully, this was the best way for the Volturi to see that I wasn't dangerous. But, we all hated it anyway. I hated having to prove myself to them. Of course I wasn't a danger! I had grown up around humans, Grandpa Charlie and Grandma Renee for example, and I had never hurt any of them. I'd never posed a threat to anyone. They would see that, then they would leave. After this, they would have no reason to come back here again. Or that's what I hoped anyway.

The next day, our friends began to arrive. Of course, the first were the Denali's, our extended family from Alaska. As well as Tanya, Kate, Carmen and Eleazar, the Denali's now included Garret. The last time the Volturi were here, the Denali's, amongst others, were also here, as our witnesses. During their time here, Garret had promised Kate that if they made it through the confrontation with the guard, he would follow her anywhere. And, from that moment on, he had. So, the loner, the nomad, Garret had become one of the Denali coven. So, now, he was part of our family.

Daddy and Grandpa were particularly wary about telling the Denali's about the Volturi being here. Tanya and her family had more than enough reason to hate them because they killed both their mother and their sister, Irina. They, understandably, were less than tolerant for them. So, when they arrived, Daddy hesitated in telling them.

"Edward!" Tanya gushed when daddy greeted them at the door, "It's been too long"

"Tanya, it really has." Daddy agreed, "How are you all?" He asked.

"We're very well, thank you," Tanya replied, "How are the rest of the family? Where's you're Bella and beautiful Nessie?"

"They are fine, Tanya, thank you. Bella and Nessie are in the front room, waiting to see you." He smiled fondly at her. Daddy had always liked the Denali's but he was particularly fond of Tanya. I could see why.

"Nessie!" She yelled, walking into the sitting room.

Momma and I walked over to her and I threw my arms around her. "Tanya! I've missed you all!"

"As we have missed you, Ness." she kissed my forehead and stroked my cheek gently.

"And, Bella. How are you?" Kate asked momma, "You are as lovely as ever, I see."

Momma chuckled, "As are you, Kate. I've missed you all so much. I'm so glad that you're here."

"Yes, we have much to catch up on. But first. . . Nessie, you're getting married!" Kate grinned hugely at me.

"I know!" I grinned back at her.

"Tanya, may I speak with you? I have something to tell you." Daddy told her.

"What's wrong, Edward?" She asked, wary. She must have been able to tell from the look on his face that it wasn't good news.

"Carlisle." Daddy called, "They're here."

Grandpa came downstairs, followed by Grandma Esme, Aunt Rose and Uncle Emmet. They greeted the Denali's then sat down, everyone seeming to hold their breath.

"Ok, Edward, what's going on?" Tanya demanded.

"Now, I ask that you listen to everything I have to say before you react," Daddy asked of her.

"Edward, the last time you said those words to us, we thought you were presenting us with an immortal child, and the Volturi were making an appearance. Please tell me that this time, it has nothing to do with the Volturi" She asked, laughing lightly.

"Well, actually. . ." Daddy started and all of the Denali's tensed, "I'm afraid that it is about the Volturi."

Daddy and Grandpa Carlisle explained the whole story quickly, not leaving one word out. After they were finished, we all braced ourselves for the Denali's reactions.

"Wow," Kate breathed, "I don't know what to say"

"So, they're really staying for the wedding? I mean, they'll be mixing with your humans?" Tanya asked.

"Yes, they said they want to witness for themselves how Nessie behaves when among humans. They want to make sure that she isn't a danger." Daddy growled.

"Oh," She said, "Ok, well, if you need us to be witnesses for you again, we will certainly do that. And. . . If it should come to a fight this time, we will deffinatly be here for that." Tanya finished with venom.

"No, Tanya. We do not ask that you will fight with us. It will not come to that, I'm sure." Grandpa told her, "Thank you for your enthusiasm, but your support is all we ask for." He smiled at her.

"Well, then, we will do what you ask, Carlisle." Tanya replied, with a returning smile.

"Now then, Nessie," She went on, turning to me, taking a deep breath "Where is your Jacob? I thought he would be here, since he can't bear to leave you." She laughed lightly.

That was all easier than we I had thought, they took it better than anticipated. Although, they still glanced out of the glass wall with slight apprehension on their faces.

"He's out hunting with Aunt Alice and Uncle Jasper, they shouldn't be long." I told her.

"Ahh, lovely." She said, with a warm smile.

"You excited, Ness? It's pretty huge, getting married." Carmen asked me.

"I'm more than excited!" I told her with a smile, "I can't wait to be Jacob's wife."

"We're happy for you, Nessie." She said, "Tanya, Can we give it to her now? I can't wait any more!"

Tanya laughed. "Give me what?" I asked them

"We have a gift for you, it's from all of us." Kate said, smiling.

"This used to be our mothers, so it's pretty old," Tanya told me, "If it's too out dated for you, just be honest." She smiled warmly at me.

Tanya reached into her purse and brought out a small jewelry box. She handed it to me and looked up at me expectantly. I opened the box and gasped quietly,

"Wow" Was all I could say.

Lying on top of the black silk was a simple, elegant diamond necklace. It had a thin, short silver chain with a classic, dainty butterfly clasp and three sparkling diamonds. The first two were small and round, positioned so that they would sit on each collar bone. The third was slightly bigger, round again, set so it would rest just bellow the hollow of the throat. It was timeless and absolutely beautiful.

"Wow," I said again, "It's beautiful!" I told them, "Absolutely perfect."

"You're sure? You like it?" Kate asked me nervously.

"Of course I do. It's exquisite. And it matches my ring." I said, waving my hand towards them.

"Well, as I said, it was our mothers, so it does mean a lot to us. But none of us ever go to an event where we could wear such a thing. We would like nothing more than for you to have it." Tanya said.

"Thank you so much!" I told them, "Are you sure you don't want to keep it, though?" I asked.

"Absolutely not. Like you said, it's perfect for you. We can't think of anyone else we would rather have wear it. Besides, something old, right?"

"Yeah, something old. Wow." I said for a third time. My voice sounded thick and tears welled up in my eyes.

"Thank you, I'll cherish it." I told them.

"You are more than welcome, Nessie." Carmen told me, a fond smile on her face.

I got up and walked over to the big glass wall where momma and daddy were.

"Look, momma. Isn't it beautiful?" I placed the open box in her hands.

"It certainly is, Ness. Thank you all, this was very kind." Momma said turning to the Denali's.

They nodded once, each of their faces holding a warm smile. I walked back over and hugged them all, thanking them again.

So, now, I had something old in the Denali's mother's necklace. I was counting my ring as my something new. My something borrowed was momma's charm bracelet that I had worn to my birthday party and my something blue was Aunt Alice's garter, which momma had worn on her wedding day, and Aunt Alice had now given to me. Now all I had to do was forget that six of the most powerful and dangerous vampires in the world would be attending my wedding tomorrow, and I'd be fine. I hyperventilated slightly at the passing thought.

"Tanya?" We heard from behind us.

We all turned towards the voice to see Jacob, Aunt Alice and Uncle Jasper coming in the back door. Jacob stopped and threw out his arms, a wide grin spreading across his face.

"Jacob!" Tanya, Kate and Carmen all squealed together.

They all lunged across the room, throwing themselves into Jacob's open arms. He wrapped his arms around all the three of them, hugging them tightly. The Denali's adored Jacob. The first time they had met, they were completely indifferent of each other, almost totally ignoring each other actually. Since then though, the Denali's had visited a few times, each time staying a few weeks. Over time, they began to accept Jacob and eventually, they saw past the werewolf in him, and saw him for the wonderful, kind hearted man he really is. It had been about three years since they last visited though, and Jacob was just as excited to see them as they were to see him.

Garret and Eleazar chuckled, "Put him down, girls." Eleazar scalded them jokingly.

"Take it easy Eleazar, We've missed him!" Carmen smiled. She kissed Jacob on the cheek and danced back over to her mate. Eleazar laughed again.

Aunt Alice and Uncle Jasper greeted the Denali's too then sat down to join us. Aunt Rose, Uncle Emmet and Grandma and Grandpa excused themselves then, they were going hunting, too. Just after they left, daddy's head turned towards the front door.

"Renee." He told momma with a smile.

Momma grinned and jumped to her feet. We hardly ever saw Grandma Renee. Our situation was particularly complicated, obviously, so it was difficult explaining it to her. Eventually, we had her thinking the same way as Grandpa Charlie. Neither of them knew the full truth but they knew enough to keep them happy. When momma had first changed and I was born, Grandpa Charlie had laid down a strictly need-to-know rule. So, it was easier for Grandma Renee to follow suit, and so she did. She didn't ask why no on around here, except Jake and I, slept or ate anything. She didn't want to know why none of us aged. Like Grandpa Charlie, all she cared about was that whatever freaky, supernatural stuff was going on, it kept us here, so she was happy with that. And we told her she could visit any time. Although she didn't want to know why, she knew that we couldn't visit her in Florida. All she knew was that it was too sunny for us, and that was enough for her. So, she came to us whenever she could, which unfortunately wasn't very often. And now that she was here, momma was very excited.

"Mom!" Momma exclaimed when she opened the front door. She threw her arms around Grandma.

"Hey Bells! Oh, I've missed you! You look wonderful, as usual." Grandma Renee smiled at her.

Momma laughed and kissed her cheek before leading her into the sitting room.

"Grandma!" I ran over and wrapped my arms around her. She kissed my forehead and leaned back to look at me.

"Ness, you get more beautiful every time I see you! I've missed you so much!" She told me. I laughed lightly at her.

She turned towards the rest of my family, "Hello everyone" She said smiling.

Everyone greeted her, Daddy and Aunt Alice hugging her. Jacob and Uncle Jasper nodded and smiled.

"Mom, I want to introduce you to the Denali's." Momma said, pointing to them, "This is Tanya, Kate, Carmen, Eleazar and Garret." She indicated to each of them in turn. "Our family from Alaska."

"How nice to meet you." Grandma Renee told them all, waving. She was slightly wary.

Each of the Denali's greeted her with a hug and a warm smile. Momma gripped Grandma's hand again and dragged her to the bottom of the stairs.

"Please excuse us everyone. Come on mom, tell me everything that's been going on. How's Phil?" She pulled Grandma Renee upstairs, asking her one hundred questions in ten seconds.

Daddy watched them go and laughed.

"Uch, come on!" Aunt Alice suddenly burst out, and everyone turned to look at her "Ok, well, I need to move some things around! Jazz, come help me." she danced out of the room, towing Uncle Jasper by the hand.

"What's wrong with her?" I asked daddy.

He chuckled, "Someone didn't RSVP but just decided now that they're coming tomorrow."

"Ahh, I see." I replied, "Should I go help her?"

"No," Jake said, "I need you to come with me"

"Where to?" I asked.

"You'll see." Was all he would say.

Daddy winked at him and threw something to him. Jake caught it too quickly for me to see what it was.

He stared walking towards the back door but stopped when I didn't follow, "Ness, come on." He smiled at me. So did everyone else. They were all in on this, whatever it was.

I grumbled at them but followed after him. I hated being kept in the dark, and Jacob knew this. We walked out of the house and then ran towards the woods. When we reached the river, I stopped and Jake doubled back.

"What?" He asked, looking around.

"I'm not going any further until you tell me where we're going, Jacob." I told him, crossing my arms over my chest.

"I can't tell you! It'll ruin it. Just. . . Come on. You'll love this, I swear." he told me.

I allowed him to lead me a little further into the woods but huffed the whole way there. After we had been running for about another five minutes, Jake stopped and spun me around to face him. He had a huge grin on his face and I couldn't help but smile back at him.

"Ok, Jake, I've followed you here, now, tell me what's going on." I demanded.

"Well, since your birthday, we've all been working on this, working really hard. It was Esme's idea. She done the same thing for Bella and Edward when they first got married, so she thought it was a good idea for us, too." He said.

He turned me back around and stood behind me with his hands on my shoulders. He pointed west and I followed his finger, "Look, there." He said.

Just one hundred yards or so away was the main house. Rather, a replica of the main house. It was smaller, only two levels, and not as much square feet, but other than that, it was almost the exact same. One side of it was completely made of glass, and the rest of the frame work was wooden. We were standing at the end of, what appeared to be, the winding drive way, which led to a garage that could easily hold five cars. It was nicely nestled in amongst the trees and you could still hear the lake nearby. It was absolutely perfect.

"Jake. . . I . . Wow." I stuttered.

Jacob laughed, "So, you like it?"

"Like it? I love it! Thank you, Jake, it's amazing! It's perfect!" I breathed.

Jake turned me around to face him and put his arms around my waist. My own arms snaked around his neck and he leaned down to kiss me tenderly. He brought his face down to my neck and whispered in my ear,

"And, It's all ours."

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	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five: Jacob

"Lets check out the inside." Ness said, excitedly.

I grinned at her, "Sure." I said.

She took my hand and led me to the door. I handed her the key and she opened the door. She paused in the doorway and sucked in her breath.

"Wow, Jake. . ." Was all she said.

Without letting go of my hand, Ness walked slowly through the house, taking in every inch of it. The front door led into a foyer, similar to the main house. It was painted white, with antique paintings lining the walls. Ahead of the door was the stairs which led to the second floor. To the left, off the foyer, was the sitting room. It too was painted white, all of the furniture covered with light colored fabric. On the far wall was a dark wood framed coal fire. Ness ran over to it, exclaiming how pretty it was. There were pictures of our family on the mantel. Back through the foyer, to the right, was the dining room. Inside, was a large, oval dark wooden table, that could sit eight people. The dining room led into the kitchen, which was white and chrome. Nessie loved it. We walked back through the bottom rooms once more before heading upstairs. The first door at the top of the stairs was the huge bathroom. It had a large, white, round bath with silver taps and a counter big enough to hold every cosmetic money could buy. Next to the bathroom was the guest bedroom. It held a large, king size canopy bed, with layers of light, pastel colored chiffon flowing from the ceiling. At the bottom of the bed were double doors which led into a large walk-in wardrobe, big enough to hold a whole family's clothes. Nessie squealed in delight at the décor, chosen by Esme, and the pretty furniture, which was all lightly washed with white, making the room have the feel of a sea-side guest house. I dragged her away from the guest bedroom to the last door at the end of the short corridor. This room had large, oak double doors. We stopped outside the room and Nessie took a deep breath. I smiled at her and walked forward to open both doors. Nessie gasped and walked in slowly taking everything in. The master bedroom was huge. It was on the end of the house, so one wall was completely made of glass. Looking out, you could see the river and the main house in the distance, through the trees. Nessie stood for a second at the glass wall, staring at the view. She sighed happily then turned slowly. She walked around the room, running her fingers gently along everything. In the middle of the room was a massive wrought Iron bed, exactly the same as the one Edward had once owned. Nessie had always said how pretty the bed was and how she loved it. To get her one the same was Esme's idea, of course. The quilt was deep, gold silk, again, exactly like her fathers. Next to the bed were two antique bed-side cabinets, and on top of one was a photo of our family, Billy, Charlie, Sue and Renee included, which had been taken about two years ago at Christmas. On the other was a photo of Ness and I, taken at her birthday party, just after she had accepted my proposal. She seamed so happy then, and looking at her now, she had that same ecstatic look on her face. Nessie walked to one side of the room where another set of double doors dominated the wall. She glanced back at me and grinned before opening the doors. She stepped into another huge walk-in closet, this one bigger than the entire guest room and the closet in it. There were rails after rails of brand new clothes, of course bought and put there by Alice. On the far side of the closet was one wall, completely covered in shoes. Nessie danced over to it, yelling and squealing in delight as she ran her eyes over the hundreds of pairs of them. Nessie loved shoes. She turned to me with her mouth hanging open and I laughed at her expression. To the left of the entrance to the closet, was another door. Ness looked at me with a questioning look and I just waved my hand towards it. She opened the door and gasped again. This door led into an en suit bathroom, just for us. The bath in this bathroom was even bigger than the other one, big enough for two. It had jets, turning it into a Jacuzzi. Someone, probably Alice, had lined around the bath with small, vivid red tea-light candles, which romanticized the whole room. At the end of the bath was a double sink, which was nestled in a huge counter, on top of which, was every cream, every brush and every other kind of cosmetic and appliance Nessie could ever need. After Nessie had touched everything in the huge bathroom, I followed her back into the master bedroom. Nessie stopped in the middle and stretched her arms out wide. A wide grin spread across her face and she spun, giggling. She stopped, facing me and took a deep breath.

"Jake, this is the most beautiful house. I absolutely love it. It couldn't be more perfect." She told me, walking slowly towards me, "And this room! The bed! It's wonderful! It's exactly like daddy's. Thank you, Jacob. Thank you so much." She finished in a whisper.

She stood on her tip-toes and wound her arms around my neck, twisting her fingers into my hair. She leaned up to kiss me, her lips hot on mine. I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her closer to me. I kissed her hungrily, not willing to let her go. Our breathing sped and I could hear both heart beats quicken. My lips left her mouth to travel down her jaw, to her neck, where I kissed along her throat and down to her collar bone. Her fingers held tighter onto my hair and she moaned quietly as my lips moved over her. I lifted her off her feet and swung her up to catch her legs and hold her in my arms. I cradled her there, still kissing everywhere my lips could reach. She breathed out deeply, another low moan escaping her lips. Her breath on my neck made me shiver. I walked over to the huge bed, still carrying her and laid her down gently. She pulled herself into the middle and I followed. I leaned over and hovered above her, my hands on the bed at either side of her head. She pulled me close to her, her lips finding mine again. She wound her fingers back into my hair, pulling me closer still. I sighed and rolled over, pulling her on top of me, my hands holding her back, her skin burning under my touch. Her hands traveled from my face, lightly stroking down my neck to my chest where she slowly began to unbutton my shirt. My own hands ran down her back to rest at her waist. After Ness had finished with the buttons on my shirt, she kissed from my cheek, down my jaw, to my neck. Her lips moved across my throat, to my collar bone and down to my chest. She lightly kissed down my chest to my stomach, her hands running down with her lips. I shuddered under her touch and moaned quietly, my breathing getting ever faster. She kissed her way back up, her hands once again stroking up my face to wind into my hair.

"I love you, Jacob." She breathed in my ear.

"I love you, too, Ness." I whispered back.

"I want you, Jake. Every part of you. I need you." She said, kissing my neck again.

I listened to what she said and tried to think. It was extremely difficult when she was kissing me this way.

"Ness. . ." I tried to speak. I took a deep breath and gently pulled her face up to look into her eyes.

"Ness, we can't do this now."

"Why?" She asked, looking surprised.

"You always said that you wanted to do it right, the way your parents did. And this isn't the way. We have to wait. We only have one more night." I told her.

"Jake. . ." She started, looking like she was going to argue.

"No, Ness. We're going to do this right. It's what you wanted. It's what I want. We have forever." I reminded her with a smile.

She stared at me then let her eyes sweep down my half naked body. She groaned and rolled on to her back, twisting her fingers through mine.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. But when did you get so moral?" She asked, a smile in her voice.

"I guess you bring out the best in me." I told her, smiling back.

"Humph" She huffed, "Ok, lets get going then. I suppose we had better move anyway, before daddy comes looking for us." She giggled.

"Hmm, yeah, I think you're right. I don't really want Edward busting in here right now." I said, laughing.

She kissed my chest once more, making me jump then slid off the bed laughing.

"Come on then, Romeo, lets go!" She pulled me to my feet and I fastened my shirt quickly while Ness went into the huge bathroom to fix herself up. She appeared back with a huge grin on her face.

"We really do have forever, don't we, Jake?" She asked me.

"Forever and ever." I promised her with a smile.

Ness took my hand and we walked slowly back out of the house. We broke into a run when we got to the end of the driveway and leapt over the lake, getting back to the house in ten minutes. As we walked in the back door we could hear the raised voices of Kate and, what sounded like Leah. Ness and I looked at each other and shrugged. We followed the sound into the foyer where we stopped dead, staring at the scene in front of us. It was just as well that Renee was staying at Charlie's so there was no chance she could walk in and see this. Tanya was holding Kate around the waist while Carlisle and Esme were standing in front of the other Denali's, keeping them back. Leah was shivering, ready to phase, in a crouch, half in the front door, half on the porch. Edward and Bella were standing together between Leah, Tanya and Kate, their hands stretched out towards them. Both Kate and Tanya were growling at Leah, and Leah was snarling back at them.

"What is going on? Leah, What are you doing here?" I snapped at them all.

Edward walked over to us, his face still turned towards the commotion at the door.

"Jacob, please tell Leah to leave before I let Kate rip her to pieces." He said quietly.

"Leah, what did you do?" I yelled at her.

"Me?" She shrieked, "It wasn't me, it was her!" She stabbed her finger in Kate's direction.

Kate snarled at her, her teeth bared, her eyes wild with anger. Tanya tightened her grip on her sister.

"Don't you dare, dog! Don't you blame this on her! You had better leave right now, or I will let her go!" Tanya spit at her.

"Ok, enough!" I shouted, "Someone tell me what happened, or I'll be the one who's ripping things apart!"

"Jake. . ." Ness warned, squeezing my hand tighter.

"Jake, this is not my fault. I came here to get you, 'cause you've to go back to stay at Billy's tonight, right? So, Dr. Cullen let me in and told me you weren't here. I asked if I could wait and when I sat down, this one," She pointed at Kate, "Flew for me!"

"You left out the part where you insulted our lost sister and made your point clear about the Volturi's decision to kill our mother!" Tanya screamed at her.

"Leah! Why would you do that?" I asked her, shocked.

"All I said was, that if their mother was guilty of what they accused her of, then she deserved to burn. And, Irina almost got you all killed, Jacob! She deserved it just as much as the mother!" She growled.

All of the Denali's and most of my family snarled at her, but no one moved.

"Leave, Leah. Now." I told her, struggling to keep my voice calm.

"What? Jake, come on! You know I'm right. If it weren't for their traitor of a sister, the Volturi would never have came here. They were going to kill you all because of her!" Leah turned her face towards the Denali's, her face slipping into a sneer, "She deserved everything she got. She deserved to burn!"

Three things happened really quickly. First, Tanya let go of Kate and the two of them sprung at Leah who had phased to jump back at them, an enraged scream ripping from all three of their throats. Then, Bella leapt towards Leah from the bottom of the stairs in one bound and Edward flashed from my side to collide with Bella in mid-air, stopping her, the both of them hitting the floor with a deafening smash. And, thirdly, I felt Nessie drop my hand. I whipped my head up, to catch Nessie crashing into Leah before any of the Denali's could. Carlisle wrapped his arms tightly around both of the sisters, holding them fast so they couldn't get to Leah. We heard a loud cracking noise, and either Leah or Nessie yelped. The other noises were so loud we couldn't tell who it was.

"Nessie, no!" Both Edward and I yelled together.

Edward, Bella, and I jumped at the same time, towards Nessie and Leah. Bella landed on Leah's back, her arms wrapping too tightly around her neck. Nessie was underneath Leah and Bella. Edward ripped them off her as I pulled her out, wrapping my arms around her and jumping back into the sitting room and landing on the floor.

"Nessie, no!" I shouted again, "Stop it! Calm down!" I struggled with her, eventually sitting on top of her to keep her there. My hands gripped her wrists and pinned them to the floor at her waist. She wriggled and protested for a second but then calmed down a little.

"Ok, Jake! Let me go! I'm all right!" she yelled at me, breathless.

"Bella, don't! She can't breathe!" We heard Edward shout suddenly from behind us.

Trusting Nessie would keep still, I leapt to my feet and flew back into the foyer. Bella was still on Leah's back, her arms tight around her neck. Leah had phased back but was still on all fours, her face turning purple.

"Bella, let her go! You're killing her!" Edward was still yelling at her. She appeared not to hear him.

"I warned you, Leah. I told you to keep your mouth shut. But you didn't listen. Then you bite my daughter!" Bella screamed, her eyes as wild as Kate's had been.

"She bit Nessie?!" Tanya yelled from beside me.

With a vicious snarl, she ripped free of Carlisle's arms and leapt at them, crashing into Bella. Leah slumped to the floor, and Bella was thrown into the door frame. Tanya was on top of Leah in a second, pulling her head back by her hair. Before anyone could stop her, she put her bared teeth to Leah's throat and ripped. All other sound was cut off by a horrifying gurgling noise coming from Leah, who dropped back to the floor in a heap. Tanya slid off her and crawled along the floor to sit by Bella, next to the door, her face rigid with shock. It all happened so quickly, no one had a chance to process it. All eyes were on Leah, lying on her back on the floor. She coughed, once, twice, and a third time, then was still, her eyes rolling back into her head. All I could do was stare. With each cough, a fountain of dark red blood spilled out of Leah's mouth and the tear Tanya had made in her throat. No one moved towards her, no one breathed. For a fraction of a second that seamed like forever, everyone was frozen. Then, in a flash, Carlisle was at Leah's side. He ripped his sweater off and pressed it hard to Leah's throat. I looked around the small crowd and held my breath. All of the Denali's eyes were burning with thirst at the sight of Leah's blood.

"Edward, Bella, get the Denali's out of here!" Carlisle yelled.

Nessie threw Edward the key to our new home and he took off, dragging Kate and Carmen with him. Bella yelled to Ness to see if she was all ok, then she followed them, pulling Tanya and Garrett. Eleazar flew by at the back of them.

"Esme, go and get my bag, it's in my office! Jacob, go to Nessie, make sure she's alright." I was still frozen to the spot, staring at Leah, lying still under Carlisle's hands, "Jake, Now! Go to Ness."

I blinked once, then shook my head. I spun around to find Nessie sitting on the floor, her hands gripping her thigh.

"Ness, did she bite you? Are you ok?" I asked horrified. I hurried over to her, prying her hands from her leg.

A light flow of blood dripped down Nessie's leg onto the floor and I quickly ripped off my own shirt to press it to the wound, just as Carlisle had done with Leah.

"Oh my god, Ness, she did bite you!" I whispered.

"I'm ok, Jake. It just stings a little. Go back to Leah, she needs you." She told me, her voice calm.

"Jake, go, seriously, I'm fine." She insisted when I didn't move. I kissed her once, then pressed her hands back to her leg.

I dropped to my knees beside Carlisle just as Esme placed his doctors bag beside him on the floor, but he didn't reach for it.

"Carlisle, what can I do?" I asked him desperately.

He looked up at me, his face pained, "Nothing, Jacob."

"What? There must be something I can do. I mean, I don't know about the medical stuff but. . ."

"No," He cut me off, "There's nothing we can do. It's too late, Jacob. She's gone."

----------------------------------- ----------------------------------

"Gone? How can she be gone?" I asked Carlisle in a whisper, "You fixed me up after half of the bones in my body were crushed! Why can't you heal her?"

Carlisle looked at me with despair shadowing his handsome face, "I'm sorry, Jacob. I was too late. It was a clean tear, it cut off her breathing and she lost a lot of blood very quickly."

"No. . . No, this can't be happening. . . I'm getting married tomorrow, Carlisle! She has to be there! There has to be something you can do! She can't be dead!" I yelled, my voice cracking.

"I'm sorry, Jacob," He said again, "She's gone. There's nothing we can do for her now." He put his hand on my shoulder but I shook it off, closing my eyes.

I looked back down at Leah. Esme had covered the top part of her body with Carlisle's blood soaked sweater. A sob choked up my throat and tears swam in front of my closed eye lids. I stood up quickly, Carlisle watching me with wary eyes. I took a deep breath to calm my breathing, threw one last glance towards Leah, then turned slowly.

"Jacob. . ?" Carlisle began. I shook my head without turning and he didn't say any more.

I walked slowly away, towards the back door, not looking at Carlisle and Esme sitting on the floor next to Leah's lifeless corpse, nor did I look at Nessie, now sitting on the sofa, my shirt still wrapped around her leg. Nessie reached out to me as I walked past her but I kept moving, dodging her hand. I heard Carlisle telling her to let me go. As soon as I was outside the house, I ran. I ran faster than I ever had before. I crossed the river in one bound and kept my pace at a sprint. I ran for over an hour, without phasing, not paying attention to where I was going. I eventually stopped because realized I didn't know where I was. I leaned back against a tree and slumped to the floor, my head in my hands. What was I to do? Leah was gone, forever. I was getting married tomorrow, and I wanted her there! My hands began to shake and I took a deep breath. I opened my mouth wide and screamed. Screamed thunderously loud, with anger, with grief, with confusion. Leah and I hadn't always got along, but since she joined my pack, she truly had become my sister. I loved her as much as I loved any of my brothers, or either of my real sisters. I needed Leah as much as I needed any of them, and now, she was gone. I missed her already, and it hurt so much. I had known loss before, of course, but it never prepared you for this feeling, it never got any easier to handle. I would forever remember that the last words I spoke to Leah were in anger. I screamed until my throat was dry and my voice cracked. Then I sobbed. I cried for Leah, for her mother and her younger brother, Seth. I cried for myself and for Nessie, for everyone. I cried until I had no tears left. All I was left with was a sharp ache in my heart, a physical pain that made it hard to breathe. I stayed there for a long time, my eyes looking at nothing in particular, my brain thinking of nothing, and everything, all at the same time. I didn't look up till I realized it had gotten dark. I knew I had to move, I had to go back to Nessie, she would be worried. I looked at my watch. Nine-thirty. My wedding was in sixteen hours, I had to be ready for that. I got slowly to my feet and started to walk back the way I came. I had no idea where I'd ran to so I followed my own scent, leading me home. I broke back into a run, really wishing I was at home now. I wanted to feel Nessie's arms around me, I needed her to tell me it was all going to be all right. I had to believe that. When I reached the river, I jumped over it then stopped. I took a slow walk back into the house. The whole family were in the sitting room waiting for me. The first thing I done was look towards the front door. Leah was gone. Nessie ran to me and threw her arms around my waist.

"I'm so, so sorry, Jake." She began to sob into my chest. I gently ran my hands down her hair then across her cheek.

"It's all right, Ness, I'm fine." I told her in a soft voice. I turned to Carlisle, "Where is she?" I asked.

"Her mother and Billy came and took her away." He replied, understanding my question.

"And where are the Denali's?" I asked him

"They're in your house. They weren't sure if you would want them here, so they thought they should stay away." He told me.

"I should go talk to them. How is Tanya?" Carlisle looked at me with an odd expression.

"Jake, maybe you shouldn't go to them. You must be very angry with Tanya, and it will only upset you further if you do anything you might regret." He said quietly.

"Angry? I'm not angry with Tanya." I replied, surprised at his comment. "I can't blame her for this. She's my family too."

"Ok, but I should come with you, Jacob." Edward said.

"Yeah, sure, fine." I told him.

Nessie leaned away from me and took my hand, "Me, too." She said.

I flashed her a tight smile and squeezed her fingers. Edward followed Ness and I back out of the house, the rest of my family watching me with nervous eyes. When we reached the house, Edward touched my elbow,

"Are you sure you're ok to do this, Jacob? They will understand if you're not, you know." He said.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I told you, I don't blame Tanya for this." I replied.

We walked along the drive and Edward opened the door, "Tanya," He called to her.

All of the Denali's came out of the sitting room, looking at me warily. Tanya looked terrified.

"Hey." I said to them, not knowing what else to say.

"Jacob," Tanya began, walking towards me, "You must hate me, I'm sorry! Please forgive me, Jake. I am so, terribly sorry." She choked out in between dry sobs.

I held my arms out wide to her and she ran into them, wrapping her arms around my waist.

"Sshh," I soothed, "It's all right. I don't blame you, or hate you, Tanya. I love you! This was not your fault." I said quietly.

"Not my fault?" She almost yelled, "Of course it's my fault. I ripped out her throat, Jacob! I killed her! You should hate me. I hate myself!"

"Stop it!" I told her. "Stop that right now! I do not hate you, I never could! I saw what happened, I know what you did. But I certainly do not hate you for it. You did not do this out of spite, Tanya. I know you well enough to know never to think that."

"Oh, Jacob! I'm so sorry, so sorry!" She broke again into tearless sobs.

We all stood in the same places for a long time. No one saying any more but Tanya, who kept apologizing. I soothed her and told her I forgave her over and over again. After about an hour, Edward cleared his throat.

"Jake, we had better go. You two have got a wedding to get ready for. You should get some sleep." He told me.

"Yeah, wedding, right." I mumbled, "Sure."

"We don't have to do this now, Jake. We can wait for a while." Nessie said.

"No, I'm marrying you tomorrow, Ness. Nothing could ever stop that." I smiled at her.

"Well, then, we had better get moving." Edward said quietly, already walking towards the door, "We'll see you all in the morning." He told the Denali's.

"Are you sure you want us there, Jacob? I understand, of course, if you don't." Tanya asked.

"Of course I want you there! I need my family with me, Tanya." I told her.

"Thank you, Jacob." She whispered.

I gave her a small smile and kissed the top of her head. She unwrapped her hands from around my waist and went back to stand with her sisters. Kate took her hand.

Nessie, Edward and I walked at human pace back to the house, no one speaking. When we reached the back door, we could see that everyone had gone. Edward started towards the stairs to find Bella.

"Not too late Ness, big day tomorrow." He told her and winked, "Goodnight." He told us both.

"Goodnight, daddy." Nessie said. I smiled and winked back at him.

Nessie and I sat down on the sofa and I held her. Neither of us mentioned Leah, or anything that had happened here tonight. We talked about tomorrow, and everything that would come after that. She told me how she saw our future and I told her what I saw, they were the same. We talked and kissed for hours until Ness fell asleep. I cradled her in my arms and carried her up stairs to her bedroom. I laid her down on her bed and tucked her in. I watched her for a moment, a rush of love heating my face. I smiled, and leaned down to Kiss her once, softly. I walked quietly to the door and turned back.

"Goodnight, Ness. I love you." I whispered to her.

Just before I closed the door, I heard her sigh and whisper back sleepily,

"Goodnight, Jacob. I'll love you forever."

I smiled again and closed the door, heading along to my own room. Once inside, I didn't even bother to get undressed. I flopped onto the top of bed and fell asleep almost instantly. The first vision in my dream was Leah's glazed, blank eyes.

----------------------------------- ----------------------------------

When the sunlight, creeping through my curtains, woke me in the morning, it took me a second to remember everything that had happened last night. I lay on my bed for a few moments thinking about it all, a sharp stab of pain hitting my heart. Then I remembered, with a jolt, what day it was today. It was my wedding day. I groaned as I sat up and moved to perch on the edge of my bed. A smile broke out on to my face despite myself when I thought about it. I wanted to be happy today, but it felt wrong to be this happy. Leah wouldn't be here today. Neither would Sue or Seth. I wouldn't turn to look at my pack and see Leah sitting in amongst them looking awkward and uncomfortable. I shook my head, trying to knock the image of Leah out of my head, because on top of the ache, my heart swelled. I had to be happy today. I was going to concentrate on the wedding and on Nessie and leave my grief till later. Of course, Leah and her mother and Seth and everyone else who would grieve for her would be in my thoughts today, but I would put it to the back of my mind. I would ignore the pain in my heart and the voice in my head telling me I wanted to scream and cry. I had to forget all this today. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and breathed in deeply. I stood and walked to the bathroom, where I started the shower.

"Jacob! Are you up yet?" I heard Alice yell from outside my bedroom door, "This isn't the day to sleep in!"

"I'm up! I'm in the shower, Alice!" I yelled back.

"Good. Well, be quick about it, I need you downstairs!" She told me, already walking away.

I heard her call to Bella and I chuckled at her. Alice was an unstoppable force. It anyone could make this day perfect, it was Alice.

I must have been standing in the shower for longer than I thought because I heard Alice again, this time calling from behind the bathroom door.

"Come on, Jacob!" She shouted, "I told you to be quick! What are you doing in there?"

I climbed out and wrapped a towel around my waist, shaking my hair like a dog. I opened the door to find Alice standing with her arms crossed, her face stressed and annoyed.

"Good morning, Alice." I said, grinning at her.

"Great, you're still naked." She rolled her eyes at me. A heat rose in my cheeks, even though Alice had seen me naked before now, when I was phasing.

She ignored my blush, not a bit embarrassed herself, and walked over to the drawers at the end of my bed. She started rifling through my clothes and threw me a pair of sweats and a t-shirt.

"Put these on, Jacob. You can't do heavy lifting in just a towel." She told me seriously.

I couldn't help but laugh at the severe look on her face, but I stopped quickly when she glared up at me.

"Don't, Jacob." She growled, "I am really not in the mood for laughing right now. So, get dressed and get downstairs! Meet me in the sitting room, you have five minutes."

With that, she spun on her heels and marched out of my room shouting, "Nessie, you had better be out of that shower!" She mumbled something that sounded like, ". . . Two of a kind. . ." as she stalked down the corridor to Nessie's room. I chuckled at Alice again. You had to love her, there was never a dull moment with her around. Regardless though, I really didn't want to piss her off, so I dragged a brush through my wet hair, tied it back roughly and dressed in a hurry.

"Jacob, you have thirty seconds!" Alice yelled from downstairs.

"Ok, ok, I'm coming now!" I told her, sprinting down into the sitting room.

"Right, go through there and help Edward, he's shifting chairs." She said, pointing into the dining room, as soon as I entered the room.

"Right, chairs, gotcha." I told her.

She stomped away from me to shout at someone arranging flowers. I shook my head at her and went into the dining room. Edward was walking across the room with a tower of seven chairs in one hand.

"Subtle, Edward. There's humans here." I told him, grinning.

"Yeah, I know, I'm watching for them." She said, grinning back, "Take those ones outside for me will you, Jacob?" He asked me.

"Sure. So, what's got Alice all stressed?" I asked him.

"Alice is very highly strung for a vampire," He told me, laughing, "She just wants everything to perfect today, that's all."

"Yeah, I really should thank her. She's made everything so easy for me and Ness." I said, looking through the doorway at Alice.

"She's a lifesaver sometimes." He replied, smiling fondly at his favorite sister.

Then, Edwards smile quickly became a scowl. He turned to face the sitting room and growled under his breath.

"What?" I asked, looking the same was as him, "What is it?"

"The guard are at the back door!" He snarled.

We walked together to the back door to find Aro and Jane standing there, waiting for Edward.

"What do you want, Aro? We're very busy in here." Edward asked impatiently, glaring at Jane.

"We wish to discuss today with you." Aro told him calmly, "We need to have things arranged before your humans get here."

"Yes, I suppose you're right. But not here, there are humans here now. We'll meet you back at the cottage."

Aro nodded and he and Jane quickly retreated without a word.

Edward turned to me with an angry look and growled quietly. Honestly, with everything that had happened since they got here, I had almost forgotten about them. Now, though, I wondered how I could forget.

"Yes, I know." Edward answered my thought, "They have been relatively quiet since arriving. They've been going further out to hunt and this is the first time they've came to the house." He looked thoughtful.

"We've only spoken to them once since they got here, and that was only to ask them not to hunt here. I think we all wanted to forget they were here." He continued.

"We should go to them, we don't want them coming back here. They really shouldn't be around these humans." I told him.

Edward called to Carlisle, Jasper and Emmett. He explained the situation to them and Jasper and Emmet both took on a fierce look, although Emmett looked almost excited. He was dying for a fight with the Volturi. The last time they were here, he was evidentially slightly disappointed that it ended peacefully. I think he was hoping that it would come to a fight this time. He desperately wanted, as did Bella, to take out Jane and Alec. I saw Edward nod once in response to my thought and turn to smile at his brother. Emmett grinned back.

"Maybe we shouldn't tell the girls that we're going," Jasper suggested, " Alice really doesn't need anything more to stress over today. I don't think she'll have been looking for this to happen, so we'll be safe for a little while."

"Yeah, good thinking." Emmett told him, glancing over his shoulder. He turned back, an eager look on his face, "Right!" He said, bouncing on the balls of his feet, " Let's do this!" He clapped his hands once then took off at a sprint out the back door.

Edward and Carlisle chuckled at him and Jasper rolled his eyes, then we followed quickly. We ran in silence. As we reached the cottage, we could hear quiet voices, then Alec saying,

"The Cullens are here. . . With their dog" There was a disgusted tone to his voice.

I growled at the comment. Filthy bloodsucker. I'd show him who was a 'dog' when I ripped his throat out. I'd like to see a regular dog do that! Someone inside snickered at my reaction.

"Easy Jacob, they're just trying to rile you." Carlisle warned me.

Suddenly, Edward snarled. "Oh, they're definitely trying to do that."

"What are they thinking?" Emmett asked him.

"Jane," Edward spit the name, "Is wondering what Nessie's blood would taste like since she's neither full vampire nor human." He glanced warily at me.

I balled my fists and ground my teeth, my body beginning to shiver.

"Easy Jacob." Carlisle told me again in a whisper, putting a hand on my shoulder.

I took a deep breath to calm myself.

"Should we knock?" Jasper asked, looking at Edward.

Emmett laughed, rolling his eyes at Jasper.

"Knock? They know we're here! And it's my house, Jasper!" Edward replied, a little exasperated.

"Yeah, if they haven't turned it into a morgue by now. There had better not be drained, empty, dead humans in here." I mumbled.

Jasper shot me a worried look as if that were a possibility. His eyes flickered to Edward, questioning.

"Don't panic, Jazz. It's just them." He told him. "Please, Jacob!" He scaled me quietly, shaking his head at me.

Each one of us braced ourselves. When Carlisle opened the door, we were not prepared for what we saw. Edward was right, there were no dead humans, just the three vampires. All of whom wore no cloaks, I had never seen them without them before. They wore no shoes either for that matter. Little Jane was curled up on the arm chair, looking even more like an innocent child. Alec was sitting on the floor at her feet, his back against the chair. Aro was sprawled on the sofa, his legs stretched out, crossed at the ankles. The five of us stopped at the door, staring. We weren't expecting this at all.

"Ah, dear Cullens, Jacob. Come in!" Aro said, straightening up, a warm smile on his face.

"Um. . .Thank you." Edward replied, still a little taken aback by the scene that greeted us. "I'm glad to see that you've. . . Made yourselves at home. I hope you found our home comfortable?" He asked.

The words 'our home' sounded like a reminder. If Aro noticed, he didn't say so,

"Ah, yes, more than comfortable, thank you. Your home is. . .Lovely." He said insincerely.

Edward rolled his eyes.

"Not to be rude, Aro" Emmett said, his tone contradicting his statement, "But we have a lot to do. Can we get this over with?"

Aro smiled at him, "Of course we can. We have an idea which we hope will suit you."

"No, Aro." Edward said, hearing his thought, "You cannot be in the house, that is too dangerous."

Aro laughed lightly, "Edward, we have already told you, we will not harm your friends or loved ones. Why will you not trust us on that?" He asked, sounding a little wounded.

Jasper snorted, Aro ignored him.

"I'm sorry, Aro." Edward replied, ignoring the question, "That is not an option. You simply cannot be in the house. You will have to witness from outside."

"Edward, Listen here. . ." Jane began.

"You can stay to watch the ceremony, from outside the house." Edward told Aro, cutting across Jane as if she hadn't spoken and she growled quietly at him, " After it is finished, and you have seen that my daughter is not a danger, you can leave." He said through gritted teeth.

Aro didn't speak, he just sat staring up at Edward with an amused smile.

Edward went on, " You will leave without a sound. Do not come to us to tell us that you are leaving, just go. And you don't need to come back here. Ever."

We all heard the power behind Edwards words. It was not a suggestion, but an order. There would be no negotiation. We all heard our breath. You didn't give the Volturi orders. Well, maybe you did, but only once. I looked back and forward between Edward and Aro.

"Very well, young Edward," Aro said quietly, his face serious now, "If that is the way it has to be. Although, it saddens me that our relationship has come to this. It is a shame that you have allowed a grudge that you all hold to destroy our friendship."

Jasper snorted again, "A grudge? Aro, seriously. . ."

Carlisle put his hand on Jaspers arm to quiet him. "Well, honestly. Can he really blame us for holding a grudge? Ridiculous." He mumbled to Carlisle.

Jane glared up at him, and he, very childishly, stuck his tongue out at her. I had to laugh.

Edward put his hand on Jasper's other arm, glancing at him for a second, fighting a smile of his own,

"We did not destroy this friendship, Aro. That was you. The day you threatened my daughter, our friendship ended." Edward told him. Evidentially, not the slightest bit intimidated.

"Aro!" Jane burst out, apparently outraged, "You cannot allow him to speak to you this way! He stands here throwing insults and being rude, when he and his family are the ones in the wrong!" She stabbed her finger at us.

Edward bared his teeth at her and clenched his fists, "Wrong, Jane? I was not aware that we had done anything wrong. Please, fill us in. What was our crime?"

Instead of answering, Jane growled. She had no response, she knew we had done nothing wrong. From the creation of this coven, most of the Volturi guard had been dead set in destroying it. We all knew that they were here hoping that we would give them reason to punish us. They would be hoping that Ness would prove to be dangerous, to give them a reason to react. Even if she proved otherwise, I was sure they would find a reason anyway.

"Jane." Aro snapped at her. Her growl cut off quickly. He turned back to Edward, "As you wish. If your daughter should prove to be safe, we will leave. We shall not bother you again," He paused, "This situation does sadden me." He repeated.

Edward nodded, his fists still clenched. No one spoke for a moment. Aro was staring at Edward, who was glaring at Jane. Alec was looking from one to other of them. Carlisle, Jasper and I were watching Aro, and Emmett's eyes wandered around the room. Apparently, he was bored.

I spoke for the first time, "Edward?" I said, pulling on his sleeve, "Come on, we've still got a lot to do and the girls will be wondering where we are."

His eyes didn't leave Jane's face as he mumbled, "Right. Fine."

"Thanks for your time." Emmett said, grinning and bowing slightly.

Aro ignored him. Carlisle glanced at Emmett, keeping his own smile contained.

"Please keep to our requests, Aro. We are not looking for any hostility between our families." Carlisle told him.

"Very well, Carlisle. We will do as you ask. Thank you for your. . . Cooperation."

Carlisle nodded at Aro, ignoring Jane and Alec and we turned to leave.

"One more thing, Carlisle." Aro said, and we turned back.

"We have a few more friends joining us soon. Caius and Marcus have gone to meet them. Just to let you know" He smiled.

There was something about that smile that made me want to lunge for him. I snarled under my breath.

"Fine. Just keep them away from the house." Edward told him.

I pulled Edward out of the cottage by the elbow and Emmett, Carlisle and Jasper followed.

As soon as we were far enough away from the cottage so they wouldn't hear us speak, we stopped.

"Who else is coming?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"Demetri and Felix." Edward answered through gritted teeth.

I nodded and Jasper groaned. We all turned to run again but Edward hadn't moved.

"Edward?" Carlisle walked back towards him.

Edward held up his hand and Carlisle stopped. Without a word, Edward retreated a few steps and turned his back. He balled his fists, and straightened his arms by his side. With a deep breath and a growl that started in his stomach, he let rip an ear splitting, fury filled scream of rage that echoed through the trees.

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	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six: Renesmee

The sound from the trees made me turn.

"Nessie, sit still! You're going to mess it up" Aunt Alice told me.

We were in her bedroom, she was doing my hair.

"Didn't you hear that, Aunt Alice? It sounded like a scream." I asked her.

"No, I didn't. Now, please, sit still!" She pulled my head back around.

I had woken very early this morning. This was meant to be the happiest day of my life, and bless Aunt Alice, she was trying to make it so. But I had had an uneasy feeling since I woke up, I couldn't explain what it was. As they day moved on, I moved the feeling to the back of my mind, explaining to myself that it must just be because of everything that's went on here in the past few days with poor Leah and the guard. Every time I thought about the Volturi being at my wedding, I shuddered. I hated the thought of them mixing with my human friends and family. Thinking back to yesterday, I went over and over the events. I tried to block the images arising out of my head. So, I put the scream I had heard down to the fact that I was a little stressed about today and yesterday. I figured I must have imagined it. Until momma came bursting into the room.

"Alice, Ness, come with me." She turned back and bolted downstairs.

Aunt Alice and I looked at each other for a fraction of a second then ran after her. We followed her downstairs into the sitting room where Daddy, Grandpa, Uncle Jasper and Uncle Emmett were all pacing.

"Edward, what happened? Where have you been?" Momma demanded.

"Where's Jacob?" I asked at the same time.

"We went to see Aro. We had to discuss their arrangements for today." He told us, looking at no one.

"Where is Jacob?" I asked again.

"Relax, Ness, he's upstairs. Rose told him he wasn't allowed to see you yet." He smiled at me.

I breathed deeply, calming down a little.

"So, why are you all so wound up? What did they do?" Aunt Alice asked them, her hands landing on her hips.

"Edward told them that they were not to come into the house, that they were to watch from the outside, invisible to the humans." Uncle Jasper replied, grinning at daddy

"Yeah, he told them all right. Jane was furious!" Uncle Emmett said, laughing.

"She wasn't exactly happy, no." Daddy said with a small smile, "But then, neither were we."

"Why? What did they do?" Momma asked him.

"When we got there, it was only Aro, Jane and Alec waiting for us. Marcus and Caius had gone to meet Demetri and Felix." His smile had vanished and he ground his teeth.

"Demetri," Momma growled, " Why?"

Momma hated Demetri, she always had. Although, she once told me that she found Felix slightly amusing. I couldn't imagine why.

"We don't know, we didn't ask. Aro just old us that they're coming." Daddy told her.

"They're anticipating that they'll need the muscle," Uncle Emmett almost whispered, " They're either hoping, or guessing that this will not end peacefully."

"Why can't I see what they're going to do?!" Aunt Alice said, "Why can't I see them? It can't be because they haven't decided anything yet, because they decided to ask Demetri and Felix to come and I didn't see that either! I hate this! How are they doing it?!" She pinched the bridge of her nose and squeezed her eyes shut, concentrating.

Uncle Jasper looked at her sympathetically.

"Yeah, that is a worry. People don't get past Alice, ever." He said.

"To be honest, I don't think it is that. The last time Alice saw them coming, she was searching for Irina." Uncle Emmett said, "Because Irina went to the Volturi, it triggered Alice's vision of them coming here. But this time, they've decided on this a long time ago, and we had no idea. I think if you had been looking for the guard, Alice, you would have found something."

"But why can't I see what they're planning now?" She asked, frustrated, "Now that I'm looking for them, I should be able to see what they've decided to do next."

"That's because they don't know what's going to happen yet. They don't know if I'm going to be dangerous or not, so they don't know how they're going to react." I told her.

"Well, I don't think, no matter how dangerous you turn out to be, Ness, that they plan on leaving without trouble." Uncle Emmett growled.

Grandpa hadn't spoken until now, so when he did, his voice startled me a little,

"I am so sick of this!" He burst out, "You know, I have known these ancients for centuries, and now, they come here, again, to destroy my family! I should have said something while we were there, I'm going back! I won't have this!" He started towards the door, a fierce look on his face.

Grandpa was normally so calm, it was unsettling to see him this way. In a flash, daddy and Uncle Jasper were in front of him, their arms outstretched.

"No, Carlisle, please. Remember what day it is today." Daddy told him, glancing quickly at me.

Grandpa seethed.

"Let's not do anything stupid now, Carlisle ok?" Uncle Jasper said.

"Yes," He said, taking a deep breath. He turned to me, "I'm sorry, Ness. I just can't stand this!"

"I know Grandpa, it's all right." I told him.

"Can we please get back to the matter in hand?" Momma asked, " What exactly are we going to do about this?"

We all looked at each other, we had no clue. Truthfully, there was nothing we could do. We would just have to wait and see how they behaved today. I told my family this thought.

"Yes, I suppose you're right, Ness." Grandpa told me, "Once again, we wait."

He didn't look happy about it. No one did. But daddy was right, today wasn't exactly the perfect time to go picking a fight with the Volturi. They told the boys that they would witness from outside, then if I proved to be safe, they would leave. We all knew the guard well enough to know better than that. The last time they were here, once they had discovered that we had not committed the crime they were here to punish us for, they had looked for more. They had looked for something else they could find us guilty of. I was only a baby at the time, but they had been dead set in destroying me. It was all ridiculous to me. I don't know what they expected me to do. I thought to myself, if I had been truly dangerous, then or now, they would have known about it. I couldn't help feeling slight resentment towards Irina for her miscalculation of the situation that day. As soon as that thought entered my mind, though, I felt guilty. Granted, Irina wasn't as close to our family as the rest of the Denali's, but she was still family. At one point, anyway. Her actions had broken the hearts of the Denali's. And her death had shattered those broken pieces. Right now, as I thought about it all, I wished I could do something to take it all back. If only we hadn't gone hunting that day. If only Irina had come to us before going to the Volturi. If only Leah had come to the house just an hour earlier or later yesterday. . . I suppose everything would be different now. Jacob wouldn't have such raw pain in his heart. The Denali's wouldn't have had to suffer for such a long time. My wedding would be an amazing affair, an opportunity to make lot's of happy memories which we would keep forever. Now, though, there would always be a cloud over this day. Even if everything run smoothly, there would always be pain connected with today. I took a deep breath to shake these thoughts from my mind. My family looked around at me and I smiled, slightly embarrassed. I'd almost completely forgotten where I was. I hadn't been paying attention to what they were saying. I hoped I hadn't missed anything important.

"Right," Aunt Rose said suddenly, "C'mon, Ness. We don't have a lot of time left, lets get you ready." She smiled at me, but the strain still showed through.

I glanced around at my family again, they were all now wearing the same tight, forced smile as Aunt Rose. Momma, Aunt Rose, Aunt Alice and I walked back upstairs to finish getting ready. As we reached the top, I heard Uncle Emmett whisper,

"Ok, we need a plan."

The others didn't react as if they had heard, although I seen Momma throw a wary glance at Aunt Alice. I pretended I didn't see. Once we were inside her room, Aunt Alice walked over to the window, her back to us. I knew she was searching to see what the boys had decided to do. She would tell Momma and Aunt Rose as soon as she could. But would they tell me? Even though I was getting married and moving into my own house, they all still treated me like a child. Normally, I would have stomped my feet and demanded that they tell me, exactly like the child they thought I was. But today, I couldn't deal with any more tension, so I wouldn't ask. I decided that everything else could wait. Right now, all that mattered was, that in just under an hour, I would be Jacob's wife. I smiled at the thought. Aunt Alice turned away from the window and looked meaningfully at momma. She thought I didn't notice.

"All right, Ness. Lets finish your hair!" She said, smiling at me.

I grinned back at her. I was going to lock everything else away in that drawer in the back of my mind that momma had once told me about, and focus only on my wedding. Today was going to be the most wonderful day of my life. In a few days, Jacob and I would go on our honeymoon and tonight we would move into our new home. I was almost giddy at the thought. Downstairs we could hear the guests starting to arrive. I could hear Grandma Renee and Grandma Esme gushing over the flowers, Daddy welcoming our friends, and Uncle Emmett and Uncle Jasper in Jacobs room, laughing with him while they got dressed.

After about thirty minutes, Aunt Alice was done. She stood back and looked at her handy work in the mirror. She had her hands on my shoulders and she smiled hugely at me.

"It looks beautiful, Ness. Even if I do say so myself, your hair looks awesome!" She grinned wider.

"Well, It should look good, it took you long enough!" I told her, laughing, "Thank you, Aunt Alice, it looks wonderful." I put my hand over hers.

"let's get you in that dress then, Ness!" Momma said. She looked like she was going to burst with excitement.

No one had seen my dress yet, only Aunt Alice and I. Of course, we knew that daddy had seen it in our heads. We also knew that momma had begged him to describe it to her, but Aunt Alice had seen it coming. She had warned daddy, under the threat of death, that he had better keep it to himself. And he had. So, momma couldn't wait to see it. Aunt Alice walked to the very back of her monstrous closet where she pulled out a long, white garment bag. Back in the bedroom, she hung the bag up and unzipped it, letting the dress flow out. Momma and Aunt Rose gasped,

"Oh, Ness, it's so beautiful! it's perfect!" Momma looked like she would cry if she could.

She reached out to touch it, but Aunt Alice slapped her hand away. Momma pouted.

"Bad Bella! Don't touch!" Aunt Alice scalded, sticking her tongue out at her.

We all stood back to look at the dress. I took in every inch of it from top to bottom. The dress was ivory and floor length. It was strapless with pearly, intricate beading on the bodice. The skirt flowed down like silk with a soft pleat in the back. It had a train which would lie, what seemed like, a mile behind me. The back of the corseted bodice was closed with pearly buttons, twenty of them which led right down to my waist. Momma was right, it was absolutely perfect. I stood gaping at it for another moment and when I turned, I saw that the others were all looking at me. It wasn't until momma walked over and wiped it away, that I realized there was a tear sliding down my face.

"Why are you crying?" She said, laughing lightly.

"I don't know," I told them truthfully. I laughed back once.

Momma cupped her hands around my face and looked into my eyes.

"Renesmee, this will be the best day of your life. You will walk down the aisle and see Jacob waiting for you, and he'll look breathtakingly handsome." She smiled, "And you will be happy!" She finished in a whisper.

I stared into her beautiful golden eyes and I believed her. Jacob and I would be happy. I nodded and smiled back at her, another tear running down my cheek. Momma wiped this one away, too.

"I love you, Momma." I whispered to her.

"More than my own life." She replied, kissing my forehead.

Momma and Aunt rose then slipped out to change and were back in a flash. Aunt Alice went after them, coming back just as quick.

"It's nearly time, Ness." Aunt Rose said quietly when they were all back. Each of them looking exquisite. "let's get this dress on you."

Putting the dress on took about ten minutes because of the buttons on the back. When the last button was fastened, Aunt Alice took my hand and twirled me around. I tottered on my heels, grinning at them all.

"Wow, Ness." Aunt Rose whispered.

"You look so beautiful!" Momma exclaimed.

Aunt Alice just grinned at me, nodding in approval. I took a deep breath and walked over to Aunt Alice's dressing table. I stared at myself in the mirror, looking myself slowly up and down. How did I come to look like this? I hardly recognized myself. Who was this creature who stared back at me? She looked kind of like Momma. That shocked me slightly, actually. Momma came up behind me and lifted the Denali's mothers necklace, clipping it into place around my throat. I slipped on momma bracelet then Aunt Alice's garter and I was ready.

"Just a second, Ness." Momma told me, walking to the door.

She opened it and called for daddy who appeared in a second. They stared at each other for a long moment.

"Well, look at you." Daddy said, looking momma up and down. He smiled momma's favorite crooked smile, then wrapped his arms around her waist.

Momma's arms snaked up around his neck and they kissed tenderly. Aunt Alice cleared her throat after a moment. Momma and Daddy turned to grin sheepishly at her.

"Nessie. . ." Daddy breathed, looking at me now.

He stood gaping at me for a second, his mouth opening and closing a few times without sound. I grinned at him. He looked so handsome! His black tux made his marble white skin almost glisten in contrast. His light gold tie on top of his white shirt matched the colour of his eyes and they sparkled. Momma's bridesmaid dress was the same colour as daddy's tie. It was floor length, of course, made of simple, delicate silk. Her heels were a similar colour, which made her legs appear to go on forever. Momma often tells me stories of when she was human, and many are about her clumsiness. Apparently, she could never walk in heels. Aunt Alice was always trying to jazz up Momma's dress sense with things like dresses and shoes, like the ones she wore today. Even now, when Momma was indisputably flawless, Aunt Alice was still trying to teach her the art of fashion. Momma was never interested. I never understood Aunt Alice's dislike of momma's style, she always looked wonderful to me. Today, she wore her hair curly, flowing down her back, with gold hair clips holding up the front. I pitied every other woman who would be here today, including me. Surely no one would compare to her. When momma and daddy stood together, especially when they were dressed up this way, their beauty never failed to take my breath away. They had the same effect on me at my birthday party. All of my guests expressed their astonishment at how one family could be so lovely. There was no denying it, Momma and Daddy looked surreal in their beauty. They were perfect separately, but together they were other worldly.

"You two look like a fairy tale couple!" I told them.

"And here was me thinking that you looked like a fairy tale princess!" Daddy said, and I laughed.

"Did you bring them?" Momma asked daddy.

"Oh, yes, here you go." He handed momma a small, square jewelry box.

"We seen these in Seattle for you, Ness. They'll go perfectly with your necklace and your ring," Momma told me, grinning, " And they can be your something new."

She opened the box and handed it to me. Inside were a pair of diamond earrings. They were simple, round studs with a silver set. Momma was right, they matched the ring and necklace just right.

"Thank you, so much!" I told them, "I love them!"

They grinned at me and I hurried to the mirror to put them in. I sighed and stared at them in my ears. Now, everything was perfect. I had everything I needed. Except Jake, but in just five minutes, I would have him, too. Suddenly, the music started downstairs and Aunt Alice squealed in excitement.

"All right, ladies, that's our cue!" She grinned at Momma and Aunt Rose.

They all hugged and kissed me once more then glided out of the room and downstairs. I could hear some of the guests gasp at their beauty. Daddy and I smiled at each other.

"Ready, Ness?" He asked.

"Deffinatly!" I told him, linking my arm through his.

"You look beautiful." He whispered in my ear, and kissed my cheek.

I thanked him with a returning kiss, then took a deep breath. Daddy grasped my hand in his and squeezed it once.

"Ok," I told him, smiling, "Lets do this."

As we began walking towards the stairs, somewhere in the back of my mind, that drawer, containing all thoughts of the Volturi and Leah, that I had locked up, rattled, threatening to open.

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	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven: Jacob

_This had been the longest and hardest few days of my life. How such a lot could fit into such a short time, was beyond me. But, now as I stood at the alter waiting for Nessie, I was more at peace. I heard the music start and looked up to see Bella, Alice and Rosalie dance down the aisle. Wow, they looked beautiful. I heard some of the guests gasp as they walked slowly towards me. When the girls had taken their places, everyone stood and turned expectantly toward the back of the room, where Nessie now stood with Edward. My heart leapt when I saw her. My breath caught in my throat and my mouth gaped open with a quiet popping noise. Was she real? Could someone that beautiful seriously be anything else than my wildest fantasy? I blinked a few times, trying to make sure what I was seeing was real. Nessie's eyes locked with mine and she smiled widely at me. I grinned back at her and my heart jumped again. Nessie and Edward got their cue and they both glided slowly towards me. _

_I ripped my gaze away from Ness to glance at the small crowd. My stomach dipped a little, like I expected it would, when I spotted my pack, minus Leah and Seth. Another quick look took my eyes to my father, sitting in the front row with both my sisters, Rachel and Rebecca, Esme and Carlisle, Jasper and Emmett, and Renee, Phil and Charlie. No Sue. My stomach dropped a little further, a lump rising in my throat. I looked back at my pack and gulped when I seen something I hadn't noticed before. In between Paul and Jared, they had left the space free where Leah should be. I smiled at them both, glad for the gesture. Jared grinned back at me, giving me a thumbs up. I chuckled at him. My face straightened again when I looked at Paul. He looked furious. His eyes burned with anger and he shook his head before looking away from me to scowl at his shoes. I searched along the row until I found Sam, sitting with his Emily. I looked questioningly at him and he shrugged. He closed his eyes and sighed before opening them again and nodding pointedly at the empty seat representing Leah. I understood. Paul blamed me for Leah's death. He was one of the very few of my pack who hadn't really adjusted to our allegiance with the Cullens. Even at his and Rachel's wedding, he hadn't spoken to any of the Cullens, or me if I was standing with them. He had taken Leah's death even harder considering it was at the hands of a vampire. I looked back to him to see him glaring across at the Denali's, who were pretending not to notice. Tanya smiled at me and I smiled reassuringly back. I sighed deeply then looked back up the aisle. When Nessie and Edward reached the front, I stepped forward, and in that age old gesture, Edward placed Nessie's hand in mine. He kissed Nessie's cheek then, whispering that he loved her, patted me on the shoulder with a grin and took his place as my best man. Nessie was looking down at our hands, so I gently lifted her face with my finger tips to look into her eyes. She smiled at me, tears already glistening there. I brushed my fingers across her cheek. I leaned in close and whispered in her ear,_

"_You are so beautiful." _

"_Please be seated." The minister instructed, and the ceremony began._

----------------------------------- ----------------------------------

Our vows were simple, traditional, but Nessie had requested that we add our own little bit onto the end.

"Jacob," She said, her tears breaking free, "I've known you my whole life, and I have loved you just as long. You are all I will ever want, and all I will ever need. I'll love you always."

I wiped a tear from her cheek and stared into her eyes. Her beauty clouded my thoughts slightly.

"I Love you Ness," I told her with a grin, " I always will. My world wasn't complete until I found you, and now you are my whole life. Forever mine." I finished in a whisper, quoting the inscription on her engagement ring.

I had been practicing the next bit for weeks, to please Ness. I leaned close and she gasped when I whispered it in her ear,

"Vous êtes mon tout, ma seule et unique. Vous êtes la plus belle chose dans mon monde. Je t'aime tellement, mon coeur douleurs. Je vous aime toujours.." (*_Translation at bottom of the page)_

I wiped another tear from Nessie's cheek when I was done. Evidently, my efforts had pleased her after all. We swapped rings and the minister pronounced us husband and wife. I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her close. When our lips touched, the small crowd erupted. Edward slapped me on the back and Bella rushed over to pull Ness out of my arms and into an embrace of her own. The first arms to find me belonged to Alice,

"Welcome to the family, Nephew" She said, winking.

I laughed, "Thanks, Alice. And thank you for all of this," I said, waving my hand around, "You're a genius, you truly are."

"_I_ know!" She said, grinning, and I laughed again.

The next person I found was my father. He congratulated me gruffly, his voice thick. I thanked him and bent to give him a hug. I stood back up and looked around. Everyone looked happy, waiting their turn to congratulate Ness and I. I glanced to the back of the queue to find my pack grinning at me. All of them except Paul, who stood behind them with his arm around my sister, his look thunderous. I excused myself for a minute and walked over to him, my brothers all slapping me on the back as I walked past, Jared smacked me on the back of the head with a grin.

"Congrats little brother." Rachel said hugging me.

I thanked her and she went to hug Nessie. I turned to Paul.

"Don't, Jacob," He said quietly before I could speak, " I don't want to argue with you today."

"I don't want to argue with you at all!" I told him.

"You should've thought of that before you let your vampires kill our sister." He snapped through his teeth.

This statement stopped me short. I couldn't think of a thing to say.

"Congratulations, Jacob." He spit, a sneer spreading across his face before he walked over to join the pack.

_*Translation; You are my everything, my one and only. You are the most beautiful thing in my world. I love you so much, my heart aches. I __will__ love you forever. _

I stood frozen and speechless for a second before I felt arms snake around my waist. I turned to find Nessie looking questioningly at me.

"What happened with Paul?" She asked.

"He blames me for Leah's death," I whispered, "I don't know if he's ever going to forgive me either. He's just so angry!" I shook my head and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry, Jacob. I'm so sorry." Ness told me, reaching up to kiss me tenderly.

I pulled her closer to me, her kiss heating a blush in my cheeks. My hand gripped her back, my skin burning at the touch. My other hand cupped her face as I kissed her.

"Jake, Ness! C'mon, party time!" We heard Emmett yell from amongst the crowd.

Ness and I parted and laughed, looking over at Emmett. He waved us over with a wide grin on his face. I took Nessie's hand and we made our way over to our family. Bella and Edward strolled over, hand in hand to meet us,

"How does it feel to be my son-in-law then, Jacob?" Bella asked me.

"I'm terrified." I told her with wide eyes and she laughed.

"Just don't even think about calling me dad." Edward told me.

"Not a problem." I laughed with them.

"Jacob, Ness. Come _on_! This is your party! Get over here!" Emmett called impatiently.

Ness rolled her eyes and yanked my hand towards him. We followed our family out of the back door into the huge tent in the garden. As Ness and I walked in, we were greeted by a loud round of applause from our guests. Our first song, Edwin McCain - I'll Be, began and Ness and I took to the dance floor. A moment later, more couples joined us. Alice and Jasper, Rose and Emmett, Bella and Edward and Carlisle and Esme twirling around the dance floor expertly, leaving other poor couples like Charlie and Renee looking all that more uncoordinated. Once the song had finished and the next one began, Edward cut in leaving me free to dance with Bella.

"How you doing, Jacob?" She asked me quietly.

"Truthfully? I've never been so happy and so. . . Heartbroken at the same time." I told her, laughing once without humor. "I miss Leah so much already and I kind of feel that the day isn't complete since she, Seth and Sue aren't here."

Bella nodded but didn't speak. She let me go on.

"Saying that though, I also feel as if I'm finally whole. I feel now that my world's complete. I didn't know one person could feel all this at the same time!" I told her.

"It'll just take him time, Jake. What happened here yesterday will stay with all of us forever." She sighed, " But today, you have to focus. And Paul will forgive you. If he needs to believe that you are to blame, to allow him to grieve properly, you have to let him do that. He will realize eventually that this is not your fault." She told me, leaning back to look at my face. She smiled at me, "My daughter is the most beautiful, sweet girl in the world. And she just became your wife. Make this day perfect for her, Jacob. Make this day perfect for you." She ran her finger tips lightly across my face then leaned in to kiss my cheek once.

"Thanks, Bells." I told her, hugging her tightly.

We turned at the sound of our names to see Alice waving to us.

"Cake" She mouthed.

Bella nodded at her and we walked over to the table holding the giant wedding cake. Alice handed me the knife and, together, Ness and I cut through the bottom tier. Again, our guests burst into applause. After the cake was cut and we had shoved it into each others faces, we headed back to the dance floor. I must have danced with every female in the room, even Rosalie. We drew strange looks from our family when I spun her around and she giggled and squealed. She swung her arms around my neck and stuck her tongue out at Emmett when she caught him gawking at us. When the song was done, she thanked me for the dance with a genuine, warm smile and glided over to pull Emmett onto the dance floor. My arms weren't empty for long as Ness wound herself into them just a second after Rosalie left.

I squeezed her tightly and buried my face in her hair, breathing in deeply, inhaling her sweet scent.

"You having fun, Mrs. Black?" I asked her, kissing her neck once.

Nessie giggled, "Mrs. Black. Wow. I'm your _wife_, Jacob!" She almost yelled, laughing.

"Yeah, you certainly are. . . _Mrs_. Black." I repeated, and she giggled again at the name.

"I'm having the best time," she sighed. "We're going to be so happy huh, Jake?" She asked, smiling up at me.

"Definitely. Forever." I replied, absolutely sure of it.

Nessie sighed again, "I can't wait to get into our new house tonight! I can't wait to crawl into that huge bed . . .with you." She said, blushing.

"It's going to be a great night, Ness. It'll be perfect." I told her, kissing her neck again.

She shuddered delicately when my lips touched her skin. She raised her head, her eyes closed, her lips searching for mine. When they met, we both moaned quietly. Nessie's lips left mine to kiss my cheek, then once very lightly in the hollow of my throat. It was my turn to shiver as her breath blew down my neck. Nessie moaned again,

"How long do you think we have to stay before we can go home?" She giggled.

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Ness and I stayed at the party until all the guests had gone. We needed to talk to our family about the Volturi. As soon as the last guests, Billy, Charlie, Renee and Phil, had left, Ness and I joined everyone else in the sitting room.

"Did anyone see them?" I asked immediately, "I didn't even notice them."

"Yeah, I seen them. They were hiding in the trees. I was watching them closely." Emmett said, knowing who I meant.

"Yes, I thought they would cause at least a little trouble, but they done as they were asked, " Edward said, "They witnessed what they want to, then left without word. Now, I think we should all just forget they were ever here." He finished with a smile.

"I agree. Nothing should take away from this day." Esme said.

Nessie turned to grin at me. I kissed her once and wrapped my arms around her waist. We sat with our family for a little while longer, mostly talking about the events of the day and making fun of the guard. Bella made a joke about Aro that had me laughing so hard I struggled to breathe. We sat until Nessie's eyes began to look heavy and she was yawning. We hugged and kissed our family, including the Denali's and accepted their congratulations again. The Denali's had moved back into the main house now that Ness and I would need our home. They were planning to stay for another few weeks, at least until we got back from our honeymoon. I was glad for that, I felt as though I should spend some more time with them this visit, especially considering the events of the last couple of days. I hugged Tanya once more and kissed her cheek. We wished them all goodnight and headed out the back door. We pretended not to hear Emmett shouting at us to have fun and guffawing like a fool, or Bella slapping his head. We walked hand in hand at a slow human pace, in no hurry. We leapt over the river and continued walking, mostly in silence, until we reached the house. At the door, I swung Nessie up into my arms. I carried her over the threshold like I was supposed to and kicked the door closed behind me. As soon as we were inside, my lips found Nessie's. I kissed her eagerly, pulling her as close as possible. She moaned quietly under my lips, which traveled down her cheeks, along her jaw and down to her neck. I wanted her so much. I don't think that I've ever felt that kind of intensity before. It was like a burning in my heart, partnered with an unnerving fluttering in my stomach. I wanted to kiss her forever, I wanted to always have my arms wrapped around her. But, after several minutes of kissing in the entrance, Ness pulled her head back, gasping for air. She giggled,

"Wow, Jake." She sighed.

"Welcome home, Mrs. Black." I told her, kissing her once more.

"Mrs. Black. . ." Nessie mumbled, "That's going to take some getting used to." She giggled again.

She looked back into my eyes, staring deep into my soul. A soft smile spread across her face, quickly followed by a cheeky grin. Her cheeks flushed pink.

"So hubby, what do you say. . .Bed time?" She winked at me.

In a flash I was upstairs, Nessie still in my arms, and I was standing outside our bedroom door. I gently placed her on her feet, but kept my arms around her. I moved my hands to slowly run them down from the back of her head to below her waist. She shuddered at the touch.

"I do love you, Ness." I whispered to her.

"I love you, too." She smiled

She reached behind her, not taking her eyes off mine, and opened the bedroom door. She took my hand and pulled me into the room. She turned around to walk over the to bed, but stopped with a quiet gasp. The room was full of tiny tea-light candles. They covered every surface, the light dancing off the walls, making the room look very romantic. So that's where Alice has disappeared to earlier. It had to have been her. We walked slowly hand in hand over to the bed, which was covered in rose petals. In the centre of the bed, was a note, written in Alice's hand writing,

Have a wonderful night. . . Do not tell Edward or Bella that I done this.

I love you both,

Aunt Alice x x x

Nessie and I laughed at Alice's note.

"Don't tell Momma or Daddy. . .Why ever not?" Nessie said, grinning at me.

In a move so fast that made Nessie squeal, I had her on top of the bed, hovering over her. Her eyes were fierce, an almost scary passion burning in them. She grabbed my face in both hands and crushed her lips to mine. Her hands moved from my face to let them travel down my neck to my chest. Slowly, she started to unbutton my shirt. When she was done, she ran her hands down my bare chest, making me shiver. Her lips left mine to move down my neck and collar bones. A low moan escaped my lips. Our breathing got heavier and I could feel Nessie's already fast heartbeat pick up pace along with mine. I kissed her hair and she lifted her head to look into my eyes. I kissed her everywhere, my lips touching anywhere they could reach. She groaned and pulled me closer to her. I smiled to myself as I kissed her. I was right before; this night was going to be perfect.

--------------------------- ------------------------------------- ----------------------------

The next few days passed in a quick blur. In the three days between the wedding and the honeymoon, Ness and I left our house all of once. When we were in there, it was like there was only the two of us. We were totally secluded. In our heads, we were completely and utterly alone in the world.

The first night was magical. Nessie was nervous, her hands shaking as she touched me. But, we done as Alice had said, and had a wonderful night. The following morning, we woke to find burned out candles, crushed rose petals and various items of clothing strewn all over the place. The room was a complete mess. The only thing that hung neatly was Nessie's wedding dress. She had made sure that it was in the closet, safe, so as to avoid death at the hands of Alice. Everything else, though, looked like it had burst out of somewhere, splattering the whole room with petals, wax and socks. We weren't sure how, but we managed to spot three pairs of socks. I had only been wearing one pair, so where the other two had come from, we had no idea. We lay in the huge bed for hours, laughing, talking and kissing. We decided we'd wait to tidy up. After all, we had forever. The only reason we moved at all in those few days was because my stomach rumbled and Nessie's throat burned. We had last hunted the day the Volturi had arrived, so we decided to go. What I really wanted was cheeseburger, but Ness preferred blood, naturally. So, we dressed in the first clothes we could find and headed out into the woods. After draining four elks and a giant lion between us, we heard someone calling our names,

"Jake, Ness? Is that you?" It was Bella.

We ran to where she stood waiting with Alice.

"Hello ladies." I greeted them with a grin.

"Ness, I've missed you!" Bella told her, wrapping her arms around her.

"I've been gone for two nights, Momma" Nessie laughed.

"I know," Bella pouted, "But we're just so used to having you around."

Nessie laughed and hugged Bella again,

"I missed you too, Momma." She told her.

"We were actually just coming to see you. Were you heading to the big house?" Alice asked, sounding hopeful.

"Um, no, we were hunting then we were just going to go home" I told them.

Both of their faces fell slightly, so I backtracked a little,

"I mean, that was the plan, but I guess we could. . . Ness?" I widened my eyes at her.

"Sure," She sighed, "We'll come for a little bit."

Bella and Alice beamed. We ran together at top speed. They were obviously anxious to get us back to the main house. Ness and I must have realized this at the same time, because we stopped dead together. We glanced at each other then looked back at Bella and Alice who had stopped a few yards on.

"Ok," Ness said, her arms folding across her chest, "What's going on?"

Bella and Alice looked at each other with theatrical shrugs.

"What do you mean? Nothing's going on! What could possibly be going on? What are you talking about?" Bella babbled. Alice rolled her eyes at her.

"Mother, do not lie to me," Ness told her, scowling, "Jake and I both know you better than you know yourself. We know when you're lying. Plus, your acting skills are_ awful!_"

"Yeah, that's true actually, Bella. You suck at it." Alice told her, nodding.

"What?!" Bella asked, looking around at each of us.

"Come on, Bells!" I told her, laughing.

Instantly, her bewildered look was replaced by one of defeat.

"Ok, fine." She folded her arms, "But I can't tell you, you'll just have to wait." She turned to Alice, "And thanks, by the way, Alice. You didn't exactly have my back there, did you?!"

"Oh, please, Bella! You gave it away just from the look on your face! You are so easy to read. And it's not my fault if you _suck_ at lying." Alice retorted.

"Yeah, well they would have believed you, if you had told them nothing was going on! But, no, you leave it to me. You _totally_ threw me to the wolves!"

You could actually see the light bulb go off above Bella's head as she heard what she said.

"Oh, well. . . Ah, you know what I mean!" She said, looking at me. I grinned back at her.

"I_ knew_ I should've brought Edward! That's the last time you're let in on a secret, Bella." Alice told her.

Bella threw her arms up into the air, seemingly exasperated,

"What_ever_, Alice! You know, you could've. . ."

"Enough!" Nessie interrupted, "What age are you both? Aunt Alice, no offence, but you're, like, what? One hundred and fifty? Listen to the two of you!"

Bella and Alice pouted at her, like naughty scalded children. I looked around at the three of them, Bella and Alice looking huffy, and Ness standing with her hands on her hips, her face looking like a pissed off parents'. I couldn't help but laugh out loud. They all just looked so funny.

"Come on girls," I told them, still laughing, "Let's get moving before there's bloodshed."

------------------------ ------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------

When we reached the house, Alice and Bella were visibly bouncing with excitement. They led us into the sitting room backwards, to delay the surprise. As we walked in, we both sniffed. I could smell the scent of each of our families. They were all here, including the Denali's. There was another scent, though it was familiar, but distant at the same time. It was scent we hadn't smelled in a while. I looked at Ness, who was loudly sniffing the air, trying to work out who the scent belonged to. She looked up at me and her face mirrored my look of confusion. We looked back at Bella and Alice, the only ones standing in front of us, waiting for a clue. Bella nodded, grinning. Suddenly, Nessie gasped,

"No. . .?!" She asked Bella, who's grin grew wider, "Zafrina?" Ness whispered, her own face stretching into a grin when Bella nodded again.

Ness and I whipped around to see Zafrina standing with her arms spread wide and a huge smile on her face.

"Zafrina!" Nessie squealed, "What are you doing here?" She ran into Zafrina's waiting arms.

Zafrina squeezed her tight and crooned,

"Nessie, Nessie, Nessie. How I've missed you!"

"We've missed you, too. You have no idea! I was disappointed you couldn't make it here for the wedding."

"Yes, I am sorry about that, deeply, but I just couldn't get here in time. I did try." Zafrina said.

"We know you would have been here if you could have been." Nessie smiled at her.

"How was it then? Fabulous I expect." Zafrina smiled back.

"It was the best, most beautiful wedding ever, huh Jake?" Ness turned to me.

"It certainly was." I grinned at them both.

"Ah, Jacob." Zafrina walked over to me, her face suddenly solemn. "Carlisle told me about your friend. I am terribly sorry." She gave me a hug.

The Denali's looked at the floor.

"Thanks." I mumbled into her hair.

"So, how long will you be staying?" I asked, quickly changing the subject.

"A few weeks. I want to hear all about the honeymoon, so I will be here when you get back." She said, grinning again. She turned to Carlisle.

"I hope that's ok?" She asked him.

"Of course it is." He said, smiling. Zafrina winked at him.

"So, Ness," She said, turning back to her, "Tell me all about the wedding. Describe every detail. I want to feel as though I was there."

Zafrina, Ness and Alice went outside to talk about the wedding and I sat with the rest of the family. They spoke quietly amongst themselves for a while. I wasn't really listening to the conversations. I only paid attention when I heard my name. I sat and thought about the wedding and the honeymoon, which made me smile to myself. I couldn't wait for the honeymoon. To have Ness all to myself for two whole weeks sounded perfect to me right now. All I needed just now was to be with her. I felt as though that would fix me, that it would make everything better. I hoped and prayed that the next few weeks, alone with Ness, could erase all of the heartbreaking and painful memories of this past week.

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	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight; Renesmee

"Jacob, let's _go!_" I shouted at him.

He was taking for_ever!_ We were running late already, even though we'd been up for hours. We had a flight to New York to catch in two hours, and if we missed that, we would miss the connecting flight. Of course, Jacob being Jacob, he remained calm and moved at a snails pace. Right now, he was in the bedroom trying to squeeze another pair of jeans into his already giant, over filled suitcase.

"Ness, relax. We've got time." He called back.

I rolled my eyes, "No, Jake, we haven't. It's ten-thirty. We were supposed to leave at ten-fifteen. But you just _had_ to make a sandwich. You know, there's food at the airport, Jacob!" I yelled. I was really getting stressed out.

"Re_lax_." He said again. He walked into the sitting room carrying both suitcases in one hand and his half eaten sandwich in the other. His stomach ruled him.

"I'm ready now, ok?" He grinned at me.

I couldn't help but smile back, "All right, now let's go!"

I had really been looking forward to this. Every part of it. I had never been on holiday before, never been on a plane. I was slightly nervous about that bit, but excited too. Jacob had flown before, and he wasn't exactly keen on it. He told me that the fact that you are just sort of suspended, and that the only way down is nose first, really made him nervous. He never said that he was actually afraid, of course he would never admit that, but as soon as anyone mentioned the flight, he started sweating. I had tried to reassure him,

"Nothing's going to happen you know, Jacob. I read online that there's a better chance of being stampeded by a herd of donkeys or struck by lightening seventeen times than being in a plane crash!"

I wasn't entirely sure if that was true, but I had read it on a website. I had gone on the computer to find out some information, mostly to ease my own stomach. I hoped that this would reassure me, but actually, it hadn't made the slightest bit of difference. I wasn't sure I believed any of it. I mean, how exactl was anyone supposed to be faced with a herd of donkeys at any point in their lives? It seemed ridiculous to me, but I hoped Jacob would believe it. Maybe it would calm him down a little.

But, no, it hadn't helped at all. All that it done, was make him worry about the lightening.

"Well, think about the, Ness. You're _really_ close to the clouds up there, like, in amongst them close! If ever there was a great chance of getting hit by lightening, it's fifty thousand feet in the air, in a big, giant_ metal_ lightening attracter!"

Silly Jacob. He had fretted about it for days, until today. Then he seemed to forget all about it, or at least supress it. All morning, he had been ecstatic, whistling and singin since he'd opened his eyes at six-thirty. We had put on Jake's Muse CD, Jacob singin 'Supermassive Black Hole' at the top of his voice. It really helped to get rid of some excess energy and calm us down a bit. But then, it came to ten-thirty and we were hurrying out the front door. As soon as the door clicked shut behind me, the nerves started slowly building. I knew Jacob was as anxious as I was, but he didn't say, he just kept smiling. We were heading to the main house to say goodbye to our family, then Momma and Daddy were driving us to the airport. When we reached the house, Aunt Alice and Grandma were waiting at the door. Aunt Alice was bouncing on the soles of her feet, a huge grin on her face. I think she was more excited than we were.

"Hey!" She squeeled as soon as we approached, "How you feeling Ness?"

"_So_ excited! I'm nervous too, though." I admitted.

"Don't be nervous! Enjoy every moment of this, Nessie. You too, Jake. You have nothing to worry about." She told us.

I told her my worries about the plane while Jacob was loading the car with Grandma.

"Ness. . .You're half vampire." She looked at me as if I was missing the obvious, "Your skin is impenetrable, your bones unbreakable. You're near enough indestructible. What are you worrying for?" She laughed.

"Jacob isn't indestructible, Aunt Alice." I told her, as if now she were missing the obvious.

She pulled me into her arms and squeezed me tight.

"Stop worrying, Ness. Jacob will be fine." She chuckled in my ear, "If you keep looking for something to stress about, you're always going to find something."

She kissed my chek before pulli9ng me by the hand into the house. My whole family were there, including the Denali's and Zafrina. When Jacob came in, Uncle Emmett and Uncle Jasper pounced on him and dragged him into the corner. We could hear them whispering and giggling like children. We pretty much ignored them, until something they said irritated Momma. She whipped her head around to glare at them and their laughing cutt off quickly,

"Emmett," MOmma growled, "I had better have that wrong! You do realise that these. . ._tips_ you are giving Jacob, are for use with your _neice?_"

Uncle Emmett gulped. He obviously hadn't thought about that. The three of them looked at her guiltily.

"No, you didn't realise, huh?" Momma rolled her eyes and turned away from them, "Idiots."

Aunt Rose, Tanya and Kate laughed. Kate winked at Jacob and he blushed. I had to laugh with them.

"Ok, you two had better get going. You're going to miss your flight if don't hurry." Aunt Rose said.

I looked around at my family, all of them grinning at me. Jacob walked over to stand behind me with his arms around my waist. I smiled back at them, a lump rising in my throat. Life would never be the same again. Don't get me wrong, I wanted my life with Jacob more than anything, but I still couldn't help but miss the rest of my family already. Daddy smiled kindly at me when he heard my thoughts. He put his hand on his chest, telling only me that he loved me. He mouthed the word "Always." I smiled back at him. Apart from Jacob, my Daddy was my favorite man ever. No one would ever compare to him in my life, it was really going to be hard leaving him, even for this short of a time. I blinked back the tears and took a deep breath.

"Right, ready to go Jake?" I asked him.

"Yep." He said simply, grinning.

We hugged everyone goodbye, promising to call. Tomorrow was New Year's Eve. Jacob, who had booked the honeymoon with Daddy's help, had decided that there was probably nothing more romantic that being on honeymoon at New Year. Except, maybe, for the location. He had kept it a secret, but explained that when he had been planning the trip, he had wanted to make it as unforgettable as possible. So, he had thought about the best time and place, which led him to New Year. . . In Paris.

"Paris! We're going to. . . _Paris!" _I yelled, my heart beating with excitement.

Jacob had finally revealed the destination in the car on the way to the airport. I couldn't think of anywhere more romantic to spend my honeymoon, or New Year for that matter. Momma and Daddy turned to grin back at us. I was staring open mouthed at Jacob, who was smiling, amused by my reaction and expression. I tried to thank him, to tell him how wonderful he was, to tell him how he couldn't have chosen better, but I couldn't speak. Instead, I touched my hand to his face to tell him all these things in my own special way. I thought about tomorrow night, welcoming in the New Year, wrapped in the arms of my new husband. I imagined watching the sun set from a balcony over looking the Eiffel tower. I showed him us both, lying in a huge bed, our breathing fast, his lips touching mine, his hands on my skin. . .

"Renesmee!" Daddy yelled.

Jacob and I snapped out of our joined day dream with a fright. Momma turned to stare at Daddy, alarmed.

"What?!" I asked him in shock. My heart was thumping, "What is it?!"

"Please, I am your _Father!_ Keep those kind of thoughts to yourself until we're separated by at _least_ two countries!"

Oops. I glanced at Jacob. His cheeks were as red as mine and he whipped his head around to look out of the window. We were both mortified.

"Sorry, Daddy." I mumbled, "I didn't think."

"No, you didn't. Clearly." He muttered.

Daddy shuddered slightly with his eyes closed. Momma snorted beside him, then looked back at me, fighting a smile. Expectantly, conversation was slow after that. Jake didn't once look at Daddy, nor did Daddy look at him. Both of our faces were still scarlet when Daddy pulled up outside departures. Jake fetched the luggage from the trunk then joined us on the sidewalk. The four of us looked around awkwardly, careful not to make eye contact. Daddy eventually cleared his throat,

"So. . Um, you two had better get moving. You don't want to miss your flight." He said, finally looking at me.

"Yeah, ok. Well. . . Thanks for the ride." I grinned at him, still embarrassed.

"Ok, Ok. Let's just get this over with before I don't let you go!" Momma said, laughing.

She reached out to me and I threw myself into her arms. I knew that I was only going to be gone for two weeks, but I was going to miss her so much. Up until a few days ago, I had never spend a night away from my family, ever. I gulped back the tears as I moved out of Momma's hug and into Daddy's.

"All right, come on, you better get going." Daddy said, kissing my forehead.

He reached out to shake Jacobs hand, one arm still wrapped around me.

"Take care of her, Jacob." Daddy told him smiling. I knew he was only half joking.

"You know I will." Jake grinned back.

He hugged Momma and kissed her cheek.

"I guess we'll see you guys in two weeks." He told them.

With a quick wave, Jake picked up both suitcases, leaving the carry-ons for me, and started towards the automatic doors. I walked slowly behind him, waving to my parents. When I reached the doors, I turned bacl to them,

"I love you!" I called to them, a tear running down my cheek.

They both blew me a kiss and Momma winked. I turned away from them after another wave and walked into the airport with a deep breath.

----------------------- -------------------------- --------------------------- -------------------------- -------

As we sat on the plane, the tears ran freely. Jacob had one arm around my shoulder as he asked over and over again what was wrong. He said I was worrying him. Honestly, though, I couldn't explain to him what was wrong. I think it was just leaving my Momma and Daddy standing at the door. I had never left them before. The thought was terrifying to me.

"Come on, Ness! What's wrong? Are you scared about the flight?" He asked me, his voice desperate.

"I'm sorry, Jake." I finally managed to choke out. "It's just. . . over-whelming, that's all."

He looked at me, puzzled.

"Ok," I took a deep breath, wiped the tears away and turned to face him, "It's just because I haven't been away from Momma and Daddy before. And even though I know that nothing's going to happen while we're gone, I still worry. And, yes, I am worried about the flight, because I hear that the most dangerous part is taking off and land. . ."

Jacobs finger on my lips stopped me. He grinned.

"Ness, you're babbling." He chuckled, "And I bet you haven't noticed that since you've been waffling on, we've already taken off, and we're in the air?"

He pointed behind me, out of the window. No, I hadn't noticed. I turned back to him.

"And as for you worrying about the family; what is it that you think will happen?" He asked in a soothing, quiet voice, "Incase you have forgotten, our family are _vampires_. Virtually indestructible, unbelievably intelligent, super careful vampires. Nothing will happen to them."

I sighed, I supposed he was right. Our family are strong and resilient. Nothing was going to happen to them. I took a deep breath and looked into his eyes. When his gaze met mine, something clicked. Jacob was my life now. I closed my eyes and reached uo to him. His lips touched mine and I moaned quietly. Jacob chuckled.

"Easy, Ness. We're in public?" He grinned down at me.

"Sorry," I laughed, "You're right, Jake. We're all going to be fine." I sighed before smiling back up at him.

I settled back into Jacobs arms, looking out od the window. It was only fifty minutes to New York, but after that, it was about seven hours to Paris. So I had better get used to being comfortable on a plane. I wasn't any less nervous about flying, but I knew I was safe as long as I was with Jacob. So, I would close my eyes and think about Paris. I would think about the next two weeks, alone with Jacob in the most romantic city in the world. And I would _try_ not to think about lightening.

---------------------- ---------------------- --------------------- --------------------- -----------------------

"Ness, come on sweetheart, we have to get off now." I heard Jacobs distant voice telling me.

I sat up and stratched, rubbing my eyes before looking around me.

"Oh. . . " I said, remembering, "We made it? We're alive?" I asked, looking out of the window. We were on the tarmac at the airport.

Jake laughed, "Yeah, we survived." He pulled my face around with his finger tips to look into my eyes, "We're in Paris, Ness!" He grinned at me.

"Oh. . ." I said again, "Paris. . . Wow." I whispered.

We followed the other passangers off the plane and headed to baggage claim. When we reached the carousel, Jake spotted a man standing to the left, two suitcases and a hold all at his feet. He wore a black suit, white shirt and a thin black tie and he had a hat under his left arm. In his hands he held a sign that read;

"Mr. & Mrs. J. Black"

Jacob and I glanced at each other and shrugged, walking over to the stranger. He smiled widely as we approached.

"Um. . .Salut. . . Um. . . Nous sommes. . . Um monsieur et madame noir?" Jake stuttered in broken French.

"I speak English, sir." The man said in a deep French accent, but perfect English.

"Oh, good," Jake laughed, "I didn't learn all that much. I was kinda shooting in the dark with that."

The man chuckled at Jake. "I understood you just fine, Sir. Your French is better than you think."

He reached to shake Jacobs hand.

"I am your driver monsieur. My name is Chaise."

He leaned to me to politely peck both my cheeks.

"Our driver?" I asked, puzzled," We didn't pay for a driver."

"Ah, no, _you_ didn't. Which reminds me, this is for you." He reached into his inside pocket and brought out an envelope with "Jake & Ness" Written on the front in a delicate script. Jake took it and opened it, pulling out a letter. He held it up so we could both read it, it was written in Daddy's hand writing,

"Jake, Ness,

We all wanted your honeymoon to be the best it possibly could. This is Chaise, and he is your driver for the trip, he will take you anywhere you need to go. Have a wonderful time, and call us!

We love you!

Momma, Daddy, Grandma, Grandpa,

Aunt Alice, Aunt Rose, Uncle Emmett, and Uncle Jasper

X x x"

"They felt the need to sign everyone's names." Jake laughed.

'Well, how about that! A driver!" I grinned at Chaise.

"Yeah. . . Um, thanks." Jake smiled too.

"Oh, don't thank me yet." Chaise told us, laughing," Wait until you see where you two are staying, then you can thank me!"

We laughed with him and followed him out of the airport. He only allowed Jake to carry the hold-all and insisted on opening the door for us. He smiled the whole time and didn't seem to mind carrying both heavy suitcases. I was starting to think I could really like Chaise. His car was a black limousine with tinted windows. Inside, the seats were black leather and very comfortable. There was a mini bar, a small T.V with a DVD player and a sound system.

"Wow! This is unbelievable! Jake said when we were settled in and on the move, "Thank you Cullens!" He laughed.

I couldn't help but laugh with him. He was so excited, he was like a child with a new toy. He played with all the buttons, talking to Chaise over the intercom and changing the chanels and songs. He was still finding new buttons to press when Chaise's voice came across the little speaker,

"Here we are! Roll down the window, you'll get a better look." He told us.

We done as he said and leaned out of the window. I inhaled in a a quiet gasp. We were driving up a short driveway which was lined with tall pine trees. Each of these trees were covered in hundreds of white fairy lights. At the end of the driveway, Chaise pulled up and got out to open the door for us. As we stepped out, Jacob whistled. I could only stare. In front of us stood a beautiful log cabin. It was two stories, made of dark, antique looking wood. It had a porch that went all the way around and the steps leading up to it were wide with lights wrapped around the rails all the way up. It was huge!

Chaise left us standing gaping up at the massive cabin and carried our bags up the steps. He let himself in and placed the bags just passed the door. He came back to us and waved his hand in front of Jakes face. He laughed when we both blinked stupidly at him,

"It's quite something, isn't it?" He gazed back up at it.

He held his arm out to Jacob and dropped they key into his hand.

"There you go, newlyweds. Oh, and this is for you, too. Call me whenever. I'm staying just five minutes away, so I'll be here as soon as you need me." He handed Jake a small silver cell-phone.

"Your fathers idea, Miss." He told me, nodding at the phone, "My number and your families are the only ones in there." He grinned at us.

"Thank you very much, Chaise." I told him.

"Not a problem, Miss" He nodded once with a smile.

"Please, call me Nessie." I said, smiling back.

"And Jacob. I'm too young to be called 'sir'" Jake laughed.

"Very well, Nessi, Jacob. I'll leave you alone if theres nothing else you need?" He asked.

"No, thank you Chaise. But we want to see everything, so expect to very busy over the next two weeks." Jake told him, laughing.

Chaise laughed with him, "I do hope so, Jacob. Enjoy." He added with a wink, before getting back into the car.

We watched him drive away then turned back to stare up at the huge house. We reached for each others hand and took a deep breath before starting up the steps. I planned to wander through the rooms, taking in every inch of it, so I could remember every part of this forever. But Jacob wouldn't allow it. He pulled my hand, yanking me back into him when I tried to walk away.

"And where exactly do you think you're going?" He asked, a smile in his voice.

"To look around. I want to see the house." I told him, smiling back.

"We have two weeks to look around this house, and the whole of Paris, Ness. Surely you must be a bit jet lagged?" He asked.

When I thought about it actually, I realized I _was_ very tired. I looked at my watch, which was still on US time. It read ten-forty five PM. I worked it out with the time difference which made it around seven-forty five in the morning here. It was strange knowing that we had lost nine hours somewhere. I changed my watch, and Jacobs. He yawned beside me and I copied him. We chuckled.

"I guess we are both jet lagged. I didn't realize how exhausted I was." He said, stretching his arms in the air with a groan.

"Hey, I guess that makes it New Years Eve. We need to be awake for midnight! So, we should get some sleep now, I won't last until tonight." I yawned again as if to back up my point.

Jacob turned to me, a strange glint in his eye,

"You think you've got another hour left in you?" He winked.

"Oh, I think s. . .argh!" Jacob had swung me up and thrown me over his shoulder in a firemans lift.

I squeeled and laughed at him,

"Jake, put me _down_!" I yelled, punching weakly at his back.

"Not a chance!" He said, with a playful growl.

He lunged upstairs and flew through the first door, which, by luck, was the master bedroom. It was also lucky I was unbreakable, because Jacob dropped me from his shoulder onto the bed and straddled me. As if by magic, he had done away with all of our clothes in a split second and then his lips were on mine. I laughed at his excitement as he kissed me eagerly, as if he never had before and never would again. He rolled over then, pulling me on top of him. I stared down at him for a second. This man under me, this unbelievably handsome, wonderful exceptional man here, was all mine. I wondered inwardly if anything would ever be as beautiful or appealing to me as Jake was. My heart thumped as I stared from his face, now flushed with excitement, to the muscles on his broad chest and his stomach. His hand slid down the naked skin on my back and I shivered.

"_Wow_, you're beautiful." He whispered to me.

"You took the words right out of my mouth." I smiled at him.

With another playful 'grrr', he pulled my face down to his, making me moan quietly.

And so, the honeymoon really began. . .

--------------------- --------------------- --------------------- --------------------- ---------------------

I opened my eyes and struggled to remember where I was for a second. I was lying on my stomach on a hard but comfortable surface. I rolled onto my back.

"How did I end up on the floor?" I muttered to myself.

"The bed couldn't contain us." Jacobs voice in my ear brought it all back.

"Ah, that's right." I laughed, "Wow. . . Yeah." I let my mind wander back to the events of the last few hours.

"What time is it?" I asked Jacob after a few minutes.

"Seven-thirty." He said, "We've slept all day." He chuckled quietly.

"Ooh, not long until midnight!" I said, clapping my hands, "I love New Year! The parties, the resolutions no one keeps, and the fireworks! Man, I love fireworks!" I was suddenly wide awake and very excited.

Jacob laughed at me, "You, under fireworks." He shuddered lightly, "Wow. . ." He breathed.

That puzzled me, "Huh?" I asked him, confused.

Jacob sat up on one elbow, leaning over me. The fingers of his other hand traced shapes on my bare stomach.

"Do you remember last year? It was the first year since I've known them that the family allowed fireworks at the hosue. Edward was always strangely wary of them, for some reason. He litterally banned them from the house." He laughed at my silly father.

"Until you pouted and moaned about how pretty they were and how New Year wasn't right without them, and Edward gave in. He was anxious all day about them, do you remember?" He smiled.

I grinned back at him, nodding. My Daddy did hate fireworks, it was very strange.

"Every ten minutes he was checking on them, making sure they hadn't spontaneously combusted, I guess. Then when it was time to light them. He tried to make us all stand way back, but you wouldn't have that. You wanted to stand closer to them. And when Carlisle lit the first one, you watched it fly up into the air, your eyes wide, your face so alive with excitement." He smiled nostalgically at the memory.

That smile made my heart jump. He was so handsome, I was lost in his face for a moment,

"I remember. I was so excited." I said quietly.

"Yeah, you were." He laughed, "Your eyes grew even wider when all those colors exploded above you, and you squeeled. I couldn't take my eyes off you. I wasn't watching the fireworks. You're exceptional without light effects, but with them, you're blinding."

I blushed at his compliment.

"I watched the lights and colors dance off your skin, making you shimmer like a glittering rainbow. Before then, I had never seen anything so unbelievably and inexplicably beautiful. It took my breath away, literally. I thought I was going to have to restart my heart." He grinned at me.

"I watched you wave your hands in front of your face, awed at what the fireworks done to your skin, a fascinated smile on your face. But I knew that you didn't fully see how staggering you really were. And then you turned to me and laughed, a carefree, innocent laugh that lit up your face better than any firework display could. Then you spun, staring up at the exploding colors in the sky. At that moment I thought 'I'm going to marry that girl.' I didn't even think that your father might have been listening, although I don't think he was. I didn't care anyway. All I could see, all I could think about, was you." He gazed deep into my eyes, and my heart raced.

"Then Emmett threw a firework into the lake." We laughed together.

"Yeah, Momma got such a fright. She chased him around the backyard for an hour throwing boulders at him." We laughed harder. "That was a memorable day for me, too." I told him. "That was the day that I realized I wanted you, too."

"It was?" He sounded surprised.

"Yeah, I noticed you watching me. The look on your face made my heart thump so loud. I remember thinking, 'Wow, that's Jacob!'" I laughed once, "You had always been. . ._Jacob_. And then, suddenly, you were different. It was hard to explain, even to myself. In a second, I pictured our whole life together. The marriage, the home, everything. Obviously, I knew about the whole imprinting thing, but I wasn't sure exactly what that meant for you. Did you want me as your best friend. . . Or your wife? I was too scared to ask." I giggled.

"I thought about that moment everyday, wishing I could tell you how I felt. . . Until you kissed me on my birthday." I blushed, "The day you told me you wanted to be with me. Until our wedding day, that was the happiest day of my life." I told him, staring into his eyes.

"I will always want you, in every way." He told me, his face serious now, "You are my lover, my best friend, my soul mate. My everything, and my always." He finished simply.

He stroked my cheek gently with his fingertips. Then he pressed his soft lips to my forehead, my eyelids, my cheeks, then finally, my waiting lips. . .

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	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine; Jacob

Ness and I lay on the floor, twisted together for hours. We kissed and made love. We laughed and shared stories. I don't think I had ever been happier or more at peace. I never wanted to move from there. I wished we could stop time and lie there together forever. But, both of us being part human, our hunger got the better of us. Because we were pretty secluded up here, there wasn't really anywhere to hunt. This didn't bother me at all, but Ness wasn't particularly happy about having to live on human food. She could eat it, of course, but she preferred not to. For this two weeks, she would probably survive on very rare steak. The kitchen had been stocked for us already, probably at Edwards request, and when we checked it, it was full of big sirloin steaks for Ness and burgers for me. The whole two weeks worth filled the fridge and freezer.

"Edward knows us well." I said, laughing.

"Yeah. . . Food, great." Ness grumbled.

I chuckled at her.

"Well, I have to eat. I haven't eaten since the flight and I think I'm starting to waste away." My stomach growled in agreement, "So, let's get these steaks cooked! You want potatoes?" I grinned at her.

"Just give me the damn steak." she mumbled.

By the time we had eaten, it was eleven-forty-five so we strolled out to the balcony outside our bedroom window, where there was a beautiful antique rocking chair. I sat down and pulled Ness onto my lap, curling my hands around her waist and holding her close. For a few moments we were silent, simply appreciating our surroundings and this time to be together. It was very peaceful here. We were completely alone, just like we felt we were in our own house those perfect days after the wedding. Ness turned her face towards me to gaze in to my eyes, a content smile on her face.

"God, you're beautiful" I whispered to her.

Ness smiled wider and gently pressed her lips to mine. I could quite possibly kiss her forever. The rush of being this close to her, of being able to pull her into my chest and kiss her lips, her neck, her naked skin was like a drug to me. Her intoxicating scent was almost like lilacs and sugar, so sweet. Her body curved into mine perfectly as if we were made to fit together. Of course, I already knew that we were. She fit me exactly.

Ness pulled her face from mine with a deep sigh, the content smile back on her lips.

"Thirty seconds" She told me.

We both turned expectantly toward the sky and I heard Ness's heartbeat quicken in excitement. As my watch beeped midnight, there was an explosion of color in the sky, every color of the rainbow. Nessie squealed in delight and I laughed at her enthusiasm. She did love fireworks. I glanced down at her to see the same expression on her face that I had seen this time last year. That awed, almost child-like, intoxicated excitement that took my breath away. Her face was so alive, her eyes as wide as they would go. She giggled and clapped her hands as she watched the different shapes and colors in the sky. The fireworks might as well have been a mirage though, for I paid them no attention. I couldn't take my eyes away from Ness. Just like last year, I was engrossed in her face, her laugh, her skin. I raked my eyes from her face to her neck, to her stomach and down to her feet. Every inch of her sparkled. My heartbeat raced and my breathing sped. I blinked a few times to make sure that what I was seeing was real. She seamed so dream-like this way. For the whole ten minutes of the fireworks, my eyes were glued to Ness, I didn't see a single one.

When the fireworks were finished, Ness turned and caught me staring at her in wonder. She giggled,

"What's up, Jake?" She asked.

"Nothing at all. I told you, with the lights dancing off your skin, there's no way I can look away. My eyes were stuck." I told her, looking up into her eyes.

She laughed and blushed. She wound her arms around my neck and, once again, pressed her lips to mine. She kissed from my lips, along my jaw then down to my neck. She planted one soft kiss just below my ear and sighed. Her breath on my neck made me shiver. I kissed her throat once and whispered,

"Happy New Year Ness."

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We didn't want to move, even long after the fireworks had finished. And we had no intention of doing so, until we heard a quite ringing from inside the bedroom. Ness and I looked at each other and I shrugged, but her face had a look of fierce excitement.

"Momma!" She squealed and launched herself off my knee.

She flew into the bedroom and jumped on a jumbled pile of our clothes and sheets from the bed. She pulled the small silver cell-phone out of the pocket of her crumpled jeans.

"Momma?" She answered it. Her face stretched into a wide grin as she turned to look at me.

I chuckled at her and walked over to lounge on the bed. Ness sat and leaned against me and I wrapped my arms around her waist. I sat and listened to her talk to Bella and laugh with her, joining in when she turned to me. She spoke with Bella for almost half a hour, describing every detail of our trip here, everything about Chaise, and every inch of this huge house. After Bella, she spoke to Edward, telling him the same things and thanking him over and over again for everything. Ness had been on the phone for almost an hour when she turned to me,

"Sure, Daddy, he's right here. I love you, too. Bye." She grinned and handed me the phone.

"Hey Edward," I greeted him, "Miss me yet?" I laughed.

"Hey, Jake. Don't you believe it." He laughed once, "Listen," He said, but he hesitated, then spoke quickly, "I need to tell you something but I don't want you to tell Ness. I need you to act like we're just having a normal chat. Don't let her think we're talking about anything other than your trip, Okay?"

My throat felt constricted but I kept the happy smile on my face because Ness was watching me.

"Yeah, sure. It's great, thanks. The fireworks were awesome." I told Edward, trying to keep my voice cheerful. It was difficult

He sighed deeply, "Great, thanks, Jake."

"So, what's going on with you guys?" I asked him trying to sound interested.

"Okay, now, don't over-react," He began, keeping his voice low. I tensed, "But Alice had a vision, just before Bella called."

"Oh yeah? What was it about?" I asked, as if I was enquiring about a book he had just finished.

"Well, to be honest, we're not entirely sure. It wasn't very clear. She just saw flashes. I'm afraid though, once again, it's the Volturi." He almost whispered the last word.

I wanted to reply. I had a thousand questions to ask him, and even more profanities to shout, but instead, I said,

"Uh huh?" As if to encourage him to continue in the review of his book.

"They keep changing their path, as if they're not sure where to go. She's seen them coming back to Forks, then just staying in Italy. But then she seen them in. . . Paris." He sounded as though he forced the words out.

"Huh. . ." I struggled to keep calm, "So, what are they up to then?"

Ness must've assumed I was talking about my pack because she asked sadly,

"Oh, how are they all? How are Sue and Seth?"

"They're not great actually," Edward replied, hearing Ness's question, "Charlie came by just after you left. Sue isn't coping very well, and it would appear that Seth has gone off the rails slightly."

"Poor kid." I mumbled

I replayed Edwards answer to Ness.

"Poor Sue." She whispered. She shook her head and turned to stare out of the window. Her thoughts were miles away, probably in La Push with Sue and Seth.

"So, what were you saying?" I asked Edward.

"Yes, well, like I said, it's as if they can't decide what to do. And Alice only see's Jane, Alec, Demetri and Felix, none of the Ancients, which is strange. But I'm not really sure if we should worry just now."

"In Paris?" I asked him pointedly, but quietly. That was all I could say, but Edward understood anyway.

"That is a worry, yes, but it might just be a strange coincidence. How would they know that you're in Paris? No one told them." He answered quickly. He sounded as though he were trying to convince himself as much as me.

"Yeah, that's true. . . I suppose." I said reluctantly. I wanted to tell him that the Volturi know things anyway. We were all careful not to allow Aro to touch us when they were here, but I'm sure they would find out anything they wanted to know some other way anyway. Again. Edward understood.

"They have eyes and ears everywhere, I know." He sighed, sounding tired, "If they wanted to know where you were, they would find you without a problem. But, Jake, I don't want you to panic. Don't let this ruin your honeymoon, they don't deserve that."

"Yeah, I know." I said, attempting to sound as though I was agreeing about the weather.

"I just want you to watch out, Jake. We will be watching for every move they might make, but they are unpredictable, as you know. Be careful. And I know you will, But Jake, please, please take care of my daughter." His voice was pleading.

Keeping my voice so low that Ness couldn't hear, even though I knew Edward would, I breathed,

"You know I'll protect her life with my own."

"Thank you, Jacob. We'll call you again very soon. We love you both. Be careful." He repeated.

"We love you all, too. Take care." I added casually, "Bye."

I took a deep, unsteady breath as I flipped the phone shut. I kissed Nessie's bare shoulder and she smiled that contented, relaxed smile and leaned into me with a happy sigh. I wrapped my arms around her waist as tight as I dared, pulling her as close as possible to me, trying as hard as I could to hold myself together.

----------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------- -----------------------

The next week went by without any sign of trouble and Edward called a few times to tell me that Alice hadn't seen anything new. So, after we had been in Paris for ten days, I finally started to relax. That first week was packed with sight seeing and shopping trips, Long walks around the grounds of the huge house and car rides with Chaise. I was glad that the Cullens had got Chaise for us, he was a great tour guide with a great sense of humor. Everyday, we called him when we were ready and he was there in minutes, always ready to go. He took us to great restaurants, not that Ness ate much, and helped us find a beautiful, secluded little beach. We had a lot of fun with him. He was out with us for hours and carried Nessie's hundreds of shopping bags without complaining. The day he took us to the Eiffel Tower, I had some time to find out about him. He told me about his wife, Vivienne, and their son, Jacques. He was very proud of his family. That was the day that the honeymoon ended abruptly. Ness had gone into the gift shop to buy yet more gifts and Chaise and I sat at a table outside to wait. We were just digging into our pastries when the cell-phone went. It was Edward.

"Hey Edw. . ." I began but he cut me off.

"Jake, where's Ness?" He asked desperately.

"She's in the gift shop. We're at the Eiffel Tower. Why?" I asked him, my voice rising to match the panic in his.

Chaise looked at me with worried eyes when he heard my tone. I put my hand over the receiver end and asked him,

"Sorry Chaise. Do you mind giving me just a moment?" I smiled tightly.

"Sure. No problem. If you need me, I'll be in the car." He flashed a smile back.

"Edward? What's wrong?" I asked him slowly as soon as Chaise was out of ear shot.

"Jacob, you have to get Ness and come home. They're coming for you. They're in Paris looking for you." He said so quickly his words were almost blurred together.

"What?!" I yelled, jumping to my feet. "When? How long do we have?" I asked him.

"I don't know, it's still fuzzy. But they're definitely there, and they're looking for the Cabin."

It took me a fraction of a second to move. I was running into the gift shop to get Ness so fast that people were throwing me shocked looks.

"Edward, I'm going to find Ness. I'll phone you back when we get to the airport." I told him.

"Be safe." Was all he said before I snapped the phone shut.

"Ness! Where are you?" I yelled to her.

She appeared instantly beside me.

"I'm here. What's wrong? You're as white as a sheet, Jake!" Her eyes widened with worry as she took in my expression.

"Ness, we have to go. I can't explain it here. We have to get back to the Cabin, now. Come on." She didn't argue, she just followed at my heels as I ran back to the car.

"Chaise, we need to go home. As quick as you can, please?" I asked him as soon as we were in the car.

"No problem, Jake. Is everything ok?" He asked, starting the engine.

"Umm. . I can't really explain it to be honest. We need to go home though. So when we get to the cabin would you please wait while we pack our things, and then take us to the airport?" I asked in a rush.

"Certainly." It was all he said. I looked into his caring eyes in the mirror and he raised his eyebrows at me, enquiring. I just shrugged. What could I tell him?

"Jake, what do you mean we have to go home? You mean back to Forks? Why?" Ness demanded.

"Not here." I breathed.

Her face stretched into a grimace. She hated being kept in the dark. I tried to work out my head what was the best and quickest way to do this. We had to be as fast as we could. I could only allow us twenty minutes at the most to get all our stuff together. I pulled the cell-phone back out of my pocket and dialed. I was only one the phone for a matter of moments, arranging flights home. But it wasn't long after that, when Chaise pulled into the long drive of the cabin. Ness and I jumped out even before the car had come to a full stop.

"We wont be any longer than twenty minutes, Chaise. Thanks!" I called to him as we ran up the steps.

We lunged into the house and I started for the stairs. Ness grabbed my arm and pulled me back, though, before I could reach them.

"Okay, Jacob, you're scaring me. What is going on?! What has happened to my family?!" She yelled at me.

"Ness, I'll tell you, but we have to move. We have twenty minutes to grab anything we can. What we don't have packed and in the car after that, we don't take home. So move quickly, okay?" I said desperately.

She looked into my eyes, her own filled with panic. I grasped at her and pulled her to me.

"I'm sorry Ness, I'm not being fair. I will explain as we pack, I promise. I didn't mean to scare you. Let's get going and I'll tell you." I said, softer this time.

I took her hand and we flew up the stairs and into the bedroom. I ripped the suitcases out from under the bed and started throwing in everything I found, while Ness went into the bathroom and started packing up everything in there.

"Okay," I began as we sped about the house, "The short version is, Alice had a vision of the Volturi about a week ago. She seen them doing different things as if they couldn't make up their minds where they were going. But in one of them, she seen them here, in Paris. At first we thought it was maybe a coincidence, but Edward and I both know better than that, so we were on the lookout. I thought maybe it was all fine because I hadn't seen anything and neither had the family. But then Edward phoned just now. They're on their way here, Ness. They're in Paris, and they're looking for our cabin. They're looking for us." I spoke so fast I could barely understand myself.

"Why?" I heard her whisper from another room. Her voice was full of hurt and confusion. It made my heart ache to hear it. I rushed into the sitting room to find her sitting on the floor with a huge bag in front of her, packed full with all the new things she had bought, tears in her eyes and her face crumpled with pain. I flashed to her side and sat on the floor next to her, pulling her swiftly onto my knee and cradling her against me.

"I don't know sweetheart. We don't know. After the wedding we thought that was it, but they obviously haven't tortured us enough. We'll be fine when we get home, I promise." I whispered to her.

"They won't stop until they've got rid of me, Jake. They want me dead, they're looking for an excuse. They have been since I was born! I can't escape them, they'll always come back for me." She said, just as quietly, the pain in her face leaking into her voice.

"No, Ness! They won't ever hurt you. We won't allow that." I said vehemently.

"Jacob, we can't beat them! If they want to destroy me, they will. We can't stop them. We're not strong enough!" She wailed.

There was thousands of things I wanted to tell her. I wanted to say that we could and would destroy them before they got to her. I wanted to tell her that they wouldn't stand a chance against a family like ours, especially with my pack. And I wanted more than anything to promise her that this would all end, that she would not be hurt. But I couldn't. She was right. We couldn't take down the Volturi by ourselves. I knew that I would never allow them to hurt her while I still lived, or while any of our family lived. But the Volturi could quite easily decimate our entire family, just to get to her. I couldn't reassure her the way I wanted to so I just said,

"Sshh, Ness. It's alright. We'll get home and we'll work it out. We'll figure something out." I didn't know what though.

"Come on, beautiful. We have to go. Do you have everything?" I asked, then I kissed her forehead once.

"Yeah, I can't find anything else. I think I have it all." She whispered, wiping her eyes.

I kissed her softly once on the lips and stood, lifting her with me and placing her onto her feet.

"Okay, well let's go. Our flight is in forty five minutes." I told her.

I ran to get the rest of the bags, then put them in the car. Ness followed behind me. We got into the car and I pulled her to me, holding her close. Chaise didn't speak as he pulled out, he didn't ask what was wrong, but I could see his face laced with worry when he glanced back at us in the mirror. We reached the airport quickly and Chaise got out to help us with the bags. When all of our luggage was on the sidewalk, he touched my elbow.

"Jacob, I don't know what is going on here, but I hope everything turns out okay. I hope you are safe. I'm glad to have known you, and hope very much to see you both again. Please, call me soon?" he said softly.

I looked into his gentle eyes and a lump rose in my throat. Would we see him again? I certainly hoped so.

"Thank you Chaise. You've been a great driver, and we've made a wonderful friend in you. Thank you for everything. We will call you. We'll come back to visit you soon." I told him. I didn't promise, it wasn't something I could guarantee.

He smiled kindly at me, tears in his eyes and he reached out to hug me. I hugged him back then he pulled away to hug Ness.

"You are a beautiful girl, Nessie. I'm going to miss you dearly. I am very glad I got to meet you. Be well." He whispered to her.

"I'm glad I met you too, Chaise. I'll miss you. Thank you for being my friend, and for so much more." She told him, kissing him once on each cheek, the way he had greeted her when we first met him at the airport.

He smiled at her and stepped back. Ness and I grabbed our bags and headed into the airport. When we reached the door, Ness turned back to wave at Chaise. He waved once, then he pulled something out from behind his back and stood, the way we had first seen him, with his hat under his arm and our sign reading "Mr. & Mrs. J. Black." in his left hand. Ness giggled.

"Goodbye, Chaise. Thank you." She called back to him.

I waved to him and smiled, as Ness turned to walk through the sliding doors. Before I turned back to follow her, I seen Chaise wipe one tear from his cheek.

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	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten: Renesmee

"Just take a deep breath, Renesmee," I told myself, "Just one deep breath, then count to ten, and everything will seem much better."

I had tried taking just one deep breath a dozen times and it hadn't made the slightest bit of difference. I was still panicking. There was no calming this situation down. No thinking it over. It was what it was, and no amount of deep breathing or counting was going to help. Right at this moment, the Volturi were looking for me. They had come to Paris to find me. Aunt Alice had seen them searching for the châteaux where Jacob and I were staying and she had seen that they would find it. Had they got there already to find us gone? I tried not to think about how they would react when they figured out that we knew they were coming and had fled home. I shuddered slightly at the thought of their anger and disappointment.

Right now, Jake and I were hurrying through the airport to reach Momma and Daddy who were waiting to take us home. I couldn't wait to get to them. I needed to be near them now, to feel safe. Although Jacob had done his best to calm me, to reassure me and promise me that I would be fine, I still couldn't help but glance over my shoulder every minute. I half expected _them_ to be on our flight home. I knew that Jacob would do everything he could to keep me safe from them, but, in truth, there wasn't a lot he could do. If they wanted me dead, they would get it eventually. And, honestly, that wasn't the part that scared me the most. It was the thought that my family, my Jacob might get hurt trying to protect me from them. That thought made me feel sick. I had decided on the plane home that I would have to think of a plan myself. I couldn't let my family fight this battle for me. It was me the Volturi wanted and I wasn't about to let any of my loved ones stand in front of me when the moment came. I had to be careful around Daddy though. I knew he would be keeping a closer eye on me now, making sure I was alright. He would be listening to my thoughts, looking into my mind, for any worries I might have. I would have to keep the plans to myself. I wasn't sure at all what I was going to do yet, I wasn't even sure if there was anything I _could_ do. But, one thing I was certain of was that when the Volturi finally did catch up with me, and I knew they would eventually, they would find me alone. I would face them myself if that's what they wanted. I would not include my family in this, they would not die for me.

------------------------------- -------------------------------------- ----------------------------- -------------

It was very quiet in the car on the way home. I felt oddly calm, too. Of course, I knew that had nothing at all to do with me being reassured any, and everything to do with Uncle Jasper sat next to me, my hand grasped in his. I wasn't mad like I sometimes was that he was manipulating my emotions like this, I felt very grateful for the momentary peace of mind. Uncle Jasper's gift was a very strange thing. There was no fighting it. If he wanted you to be calm, or excited, or tired, you would be. Actually, he was very useful to have around. At this moment I was extremely glad that he was here.

"Yes, I am, too, Ness" Daddy agreed with my thought quietly, with a small smile in the mirror.

I tried to smile back at him but I think it came out as more of a grimace. Although I felt calm inside, I couldn't quite be happy. Smiling was difficult.

Daddy's comment was the last one made until we reached home. No one asked what we were agreeing on, no one spoke at all, in fact. When we pulled up into the huge garage, we saw Aunt Alice and Grandpa waiting for us in the doorway. Aunt Alice's eyes lit up with acute relief when we all got out of the car. She flashed to Uncle Jaspers side and grasped his hand.

"I missed you." She breathed to him.

He chuckled and kissed her cheek once then her lips very gently. Aunt Alice dragged her eyes away from Uncle Jasper's and focused on me,

"Ness, I missed you, too! How are you sweetheart?" She asked.

"Calm." I said pointedly as my eyes flickered towards Uncle Jasper then back to hers.

They both laughed quietly and I tried again to smile back.

"Hey, Jake. Aright?" Aunt Alice asked, winking at Jacob.

"Yeah, fabulous, Alice. Thanks." He rolled his eyes at her and she laughed her tinkling laugh again.

Jacob took my hand and we walked back into the house. We paused at the door so that Grandpa could hug me and welcome us home. Although, obviously, it wasn't actually possible, he looked worn out. My Grandpa was technically over three hundred years old, but didn't look a day over twenty five. Today, though, his eyes looked older and tired. He had the look of a man who had finally just had enough. Despite Uncle Jaspers peace flowing through me, I was worried. Grandpa was the back bone of this family. I had never seen his innate calm so rocked. If Grandpa was worried, then there was definitely reason to panic. How I pitied him just now. The Volturi were friends a long time ago. He was part of their coven for a while, almost. This was the third time that they had came at us and I knew that this must be hard for Grandpa. It was hurting him, and this just made me angrier.

As we walked into the sitting room, Aunt Rose, Uncle Emmett and Grandma greeted us. Grandma squeezed me tight and exhaled a deep breath when her arms closed around me. It was the sound of relief. When I looked into her eyes, I seen the same look I had seen in Aunt Alice's in the garage. I was so glad to be home. I actually felt safer here, even though I knew that this was the first place the Volturi would come once they found the châteaux empty in Paris. I shuddered slightly as I thought about them coming back here.

Once we were all in the sitting room, I turned to Aunt Alice,

"Okay, Aunt Alice, what do you know? And don't leave _anything_ out. I want to know_ everything._" I finished, just incase she planned on sparing me any details.

Aunt Alice's eyes flashed from mine to Daddy's for a fraction of a second, but it was long enough for me to catch Daddy shake his head, just infinitesimally. They thought I didn't notice, and so Aunt Alice began her story. It was lies, and I knew it, even before she started speaking. I didn't say anything though, I waited for her to finish.

"Well, there's really not that much that you don't already know. I assume Jake told youeverything Edward told him?" She asked. I nodded once.

"Yeah, so there isn't a lot more to tell you. That's about everything." Her eyes flashed again from mine to Daddy's then back.

I looked around at the faces of my family and only my Mother's and Uncle Emmett's expressions showed any conflict.

"Okay. . ." I began slowly, " So, that's the story you're all sticking to is it?" My eyes narrowed.

Momma smiled ever so slightly as if she had hoped I wouldn't fall for it. Uncle Emmett smothered a chuckle. Everyone else looked genuinely confused at my question. I didn't buy that look either.

"So, in the day and a half that it took Jake and I to get home, nothing changed?" I asked, glancing around at them all again. Uncle Jasper looked slightly guilty this time.

"Nope. Like I said, that's everything." Aunt Alice claimed.

I stood up and walked over to the glass wall. I stared out for a moment at the beautiful meadow, feeling nine pairs of eyes on my back. With a deep breath, I turned back to face them, my arms folding over my chest.

"Aunt Alice," I began quietly, "I know you are lying to me. I said I wanted to know everything, and you've told me nothing. That's okay though," I said a little louder when she went to interrupt, "Uncle Emmett will tell me. Thanks anyway."

My eyes were cold, my voice flat when I turned away from her.

"Renesmee, that was rude. Apologize. Now." Daddy chided me.

"No, I wont apologize. Daddy, I don't want to be rude, but clearly you were all perfectly happy to tell me lies. I am not a child anymore. Stop trying to shield my mind. It's not as fragile as you all think. Now, someone tell me the truth. All of it, the whole story!" I said quickly, the words tumbling out.

Daddy appeared to be trying to decide whether to yell at me or give me what I wanted. He didn't get the chance to do either.

"Fine." Aunt Alice snapped, "I'll tell you it all. But none of us will apologize for trying to protect you from anything, Renesmee. That is something we will never be sorry for. We all love you more than anything. Deal with it!" her face was very serious, parental. It was comical.

I gaped at her for a moment but then I couldn't help but giggle at her. Aunt Alice was never that serious, that was Aunt Rose's job. Aunt Alice was the fun Aunt that you could shop and giggle and have girlie chats with. So, to see her face so irritated was very funny to me. She joined in my laughing after a moment and seemed to simmer down.

"Okay, Aunt Alice, I am sorry. I didn't mean to be rude. Please, tell me everything you know." I told her with a smile.

She took a deep, shaky breath, "So, Jacob told you how they were looking for you in Paris, and we knew that if you didn't leave, then they would find you there. But we didn't want to tell you that they would be coming here. We know now that they will come here looking for you."

I gulped, "Yeah, I figured that they would come here next. So, what was the big secret in that?" I was confused, why would they keep that from me? I already expected _that_.

"Well. . . Alice also seen that if we told you they were coming here, and that if she told you the whole story," Uncle Jasper began, his voice getting quieter with every word, "That you would run off to find them yourself. And we couldn't let you do that, so we thought it best not to tell you." He smiled apologetically at me, as if he thought the idea of me running off was silly now.

"Ahh. . " Was all I said. I couldn't think of anything else to say. Especially not with Daddy here.

"Now, you listen to me, Ness." Momma said, "I don't want you going anywhere, do you hear me? You will not go looking for them, you will not think up any silly plan of your own, okay? You will stay here with us, and we will fight this together." Her face was determined.

"Yes, Momma." I told her with a small smile.

"Alright, so _are_ we going to do then? We don't have time to sit around here chit-chatting, let's get a plan organized!" Uncle Emmett yelled.

Uncle Emmett hated the Volturi as much as any of us, but he most wanted the chance to sink his teeth into one of them. His bravery sometimes teetered on stupidity, though. He wasn't scared of anything at all, the harder the fight, the better for him. It terrified me, because I feared that his enthusiasm would someday be his downfall. I gulped again and shook the thought out of my head. Daddy grimaced at his big brother, then cleared his throat,

"Em, calm down. You're scaring Nessie. Just relax, we need time to think. We _will_ figure this out." He told him, his eyes burning with determination at the end.

"Yeah. . . Um, sorry, kid." He said to me, "I'm just so ready for this!" He grinned at me.

I laughed once, "That's alright Uncle Emmett. And you didn't scare me, I'm fine."

Daddy let that one slide, but he knew it was a lie. I was terrified. For my family, for myself, and for everyone who the Volturi came across while they searched for me. I knew that we would not be the only ones to face them this time. I shuddered a little.

"Okay. . ." I spoke slowly, "Aunt Alice, can you see anything now? Can you give us a rough idea of how long we've got?" I asked her.

Aunt Alice's eyes clouded over for a second, then focused again.

"They're still in Paris. They figured you're not stupid enough to come home straight away, the think you're hiding somewhere in France." She said with a tight smile on her face.

"Clearly, they're not as smart as they think without their precious Demetri, huh?" She laughed once.

"Demetri? He's not with them? Why not?" I asked quickly. This surprised me. I always thought of the Volturi as a unit. I didn't think they went anywhere separately. And Demetri was the worlds best tracker, if they needed to find me, he could've found me in no time at all. If he had been with them, they probably would have beat us home! So, why wasn't he with them, then?

"No, he's not. I thought Jake told you all this?" Aunt Alice turned to him.

"Um," Jake began, speaking for the first time since we came into the house, "I didn't think it really mattered. They're coming here, regardless of which of them that includes, right?" He looked around at us all.

"Yeah, I know, it doesn't make much of a difference, but it is strange that he's not with them." I said, walking back over to Jacob. I stood with my back against him and drew his arm around my waist. He kissed the top of my head.

"Hmm. . . I never thought to look for the reason to be honest when I seen that it was just Alec, Jane, and Felix. Hold on." Aunt Alice said and her eyes clouded over again.

"Oh my. . .' Daddy breathed when he saw the vision in Aunt Alice's head.

"What? What is it?" Momma asked anxiously.

"They disbanded." He said quietly, "Jane, Alec and Felix, they. . . Walked out, I guess you could call it." Daddy told her, still reading Aunt Alice's thoughts. He replayed the vision for the rest of us,

"Jane wanted to come looking for us." He began in a flat voice, "She told Aro that she thought Ness should be destroyed, incase she and Jake should. . ._ procreate_, as she put it. Aro told her no, it was over, she wasn't to bother us anymore. But she defied him. She told him she had to come here for Ness, when really what she desperately wants is. . . _Oh_. Oh!" Daddy's eyes widened.

"What? What does she want?" Aunt Rose asked him loudly. Her voice startled me, she hadn't spoken at all since we got home.

A wide grin spread across Daddy's face, then he was laughing. His face was suddenly free from worry. There was only humor in his eyes now as he laughed even harder.

"Edward! What's with you? What does she want?" Momma demanded.

"She wants. . .She wants. . ." Daddy coughed out in between giggles, "She wants. . ._me!"_ Then he broke down in laughter again.

Every one of us stared at him in disbelief, except for Aunt Alice, who's eyes were still glassy. I gaped at him, my eyes wide. Okay, why was this funny? They were still coming here, they were still attacking our family. Had he gone _crazy_?!

"Daddy, that's not_ funny!_" I yelled at him, "They're still coming here! It doesn't matter who they're coming for. They're coming for _us!"_

He straightened up when he heard the strain in my voice and calmed his laughing, although a grin still stretched across his face.

"Sorry, Ness. I'm just relieved is all. Don't you see? This is good, they're not coming for you." He told me.

"And what difference does that make? They're _still_ coming here!" I said again.

"What difference? Ness, it makes a huge difference. They're not with Demetri which means they'll find it harder to track you down. So you can go away somewhere, you and Jake, before they come here, until we get this sorted out. Don't you get this, Ness? They don't want to hurt you, they want _me!" _He smiled again.

"Daddy, they do want me. They came to Paris looking for me. If they had only wanted you, they would've came right here, but they didn't. They came for me first." I said slowly.

"Yes, but they weren't actually after you. They were looking for you because they figured if they got to you first, that it would put me in such a rage that I would go looking for them, to destroy them, which would only make it easier for them to kill me. They hoped I would be so blinded by anger and hate that it would hinder me." He spoke calmly as if he was describing the weather.

I took a deep breath to calm myself. This was unreal. What was he saying? That he wanted me to run and hide while the Volturi came here to destroy him?

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. And that's exactly what you will do" He replied to my thought.

"_No"_ I snarled through my teeth. Daddy's eyes widened.

"What do you mean, No? This is not up for negotiation, Renesmee. You will not fight them." He told me through his own teeth. The stress in his face was back.

"I am not a child! I will not run away when there's danger. Never. Momma said the same thing. We face them together. If my family fight, then we fight, too. Right, Jake?" I turned to glance at him.

"Absolutely." He answered immediately, "Either we all stay here together, or we all leave together. Which ever you want, but we stay with you, what ever you decide." The determination in his voice and his eyes as he stared at my father made me smile. So brave.

"Ness. . ." Daddy began.

"No," I interrupted him, "I told you. Jake told you. We're not going anywhere. If they want one of us, they face all of us. We won't leave. If you fight, we fight." I told him again.

Uncle Emmett grinned at me, as did Uncle Jasper. Aunt Rose stared at me with what looked like admiration. Grandma looked strained, clearly torn between my safety and the fact that I was right in what I said. Grandpa's face was blank. Aunt Alice's eyes were _still_ unfocused. I wondered if she'd heard any of that. Daddy opened his mouth to speak, but I interrupted him again.

"What's Aunt Alice seeing now?" I asked him.

"She's going over everything again, making sure she hasn't missed anything." He walked over to her and shook her gently, "Alice?"

Her hand reached out towards him then, and her eyes widened.

"Edward. . . " She whispered.

"I'm here, Alice." He told her.

"No. . . No, Edward, help!" She yelled suddenly.

"Alice! Alice, I'm here, what is it?" He asked in alarm. Then his eyes were as wide as hers.

"Edward. . . Jacob." She said, her voice cracking. Jacob's breath inhaled in a sharp gasp behind me. "Edward, get him! Edw. . .No!" She screamed.

"Alice!" Uncle Jasper flashed to her side and shook her again rougher than Daddy had. "Alice, what is it?" He grabbed her face in both his hands and stared into her eyes. "Alice, come on! What is it?" He asked her desperately.

"Jake. . ." She moaned, "Jake, I said no. I _told_ you no. Please, Jake, no." She finished in a whisper.

I turned to look at Jake, terrified. He was there though, unharmed, untouched. What was she seeing?

"Daddy! What's wrong with her? What can she see?" I asked him in a yell.

"I don't. . . I don't know. It's all shaky. I can see Jacob in the meadow. . .With Alice and I. And. . . Jane." His voice was quiet.

"Edward. . . " Momma began walking towards him but he held his hand out to quiet her and she stopped, her own arms outstretched to reach him.

Suddenly, Aunt Alice screamed and dropped to her knees at the same time as Daddy grabbed the sides of his head and yelled in pain.

"Edward!" Momma called as she ran to him.

Uncle Jasper, Uncle Emmett and Aunt Rose yelled in shock, too. Grandpa, Grandma, Jake and I just stood there still. Frozen in horror. What was going on here?!

"Daddy?!" I shouted to him, "Daddy, what is it?!" I was terrified.

"Jake. . ." Aunt Alice moaned again shaking her head slowly. "Oh, Jacob, no." A tearless sob broke up her throat. "No, no, please, no." She whispered, her voice full of pain.

Daddy was still on the floor, his head in his hands, gasping. Slowly, he pulled his hands away from his face and lifted his head. His eyes focused on Jacob, just as Aunt Alice's own eyes refocused and swiveled to find him. Jake's eye's were frozen wide with terror as he stared at them both. He swallowed loudly.

"What. . . Was that?" He asked, his voice thick with fear.

"Jake. . ." Aunt Alice breathed. "We seen. . . We just watched you die."

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	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven; Jacob

No-one spoke. The only sound was Alice and Edward's ragged breathing. Alice's eyes drifted back down and she stared at the floor. Everyone else appeared to be frozen -- Then a new sound slowly got louder. Nessie's breathing was getting faster, until it started coming in short gasps.

"No." She whispered defiantly, breaking the almost-silence. "No, you couldn't have seen that. There must be a mistake. Aunt Alice, look again, you must have it wrong!" Each word sounded forced as she struggled to control her breathing.

"Ness, it wasn't a mistake, that's what I saw. I'm sorry." Alice whispered.

"What exactly did you see, Alice?" I choked out.

"I don't. . . Jake, you don't want me to describe it." She said, her eyes not meeting mine.

"Yes, I do." I told her, "Please, Alice. I have to know" I almost pleaded.

Ness groaned beside me, but didn't object to the story. I wasn't sure why I wanted to know really. Morbid curiosity maybe. I told Alice, though, that I wanted to know so that I could work out how to avoid it, obviously.

"Okay," She sighed, "Just give me a second." She took a few deep breaths before standing, to walk over and sit back down on the sofa.

Edward and Bella stayed on the floor by her feet, their eyes locked on my face.

"Okay, well, like Edward told you, I saw you in the meadow with Edward and I, and Jane. She and Edward were yelling at each other, I think, I can't be sure what it was about, it was all fuzzy. You and I were in between them, you facing Edward, me facing Jane. You were in your human form. Jane. . . Snarled at something Edward said, then turned to you. . . And she smiled." Her voice was low and strained. She took another deep breath, then kept going,

"She was burning you. That's her. . . _gift_, remember? You were on the ground, screaming in pain, and we both ran to you. But, just as we reached you, you stopped. I turned to look at Jane and she smiled at _me_." Alice Shuddered and closed her eyes. She went on, her voice a whisper now,

"The pain. . . It's like nothing else. That's when I screamed. And, because Edward was in my head, and I could quite clearly feel the pain, he could, too."

Bella whimpered behind me and cowered into Edward's side. Alice glanced at her, an apologetic look in her eyes.

"I couldn't hear anything, the pain was too much. So, I didn't hear them coming, and I didn't hear you backing away. Then suddenly, the pain stopped and in the same second, we heard you snarl and growl. Alec and Felix had appeared, and they were both snapping at you." Her voice cracked and rose a pitch higher in pain,

"Before we could do anything to help, Jane lunged at us both. She bit at my arm, at the same time she took a swipe at Edward's face. Edward was quicker though, and he grabbed her arm and pulled. Her arm snapped and she snarled, which caught Alec's attention. He flew at me. We couldn't hear you. Edward and I were kind of occupied with Jane and Alec, so we couldn't watch you, they both kept coming at us, although we were ripping them apart," A tiny hint of a smug smile flashed on her face, then it crumpled again in pain,

"But then. . . You screamed for Edward. The four of us froze at the sound and turned to you, just as Felix. . . Just as he put his bared teeth to your neck. . . And ripped." She shuddered then whispered, "Your eyes. . . You looked so betrayed, as if we had turned our backs on you. We couldn't help you, Jake. We didn't know. I'm so sorry. We didn't know." She finished so quietly, even I had to strain to hear her. Her body shook with silent, dry sobs.

Jasper flashed to her side and pulled her against him. He rocked her gently, his arms wrapped around her. He shushed her and soothed her, promising her she was okay.

"Alice, you're okay, I'm fine." I promised her, too.

"Jacob. . ." Nessie whispered, "_Are_ you okay?" Her voice sounded thick.

I tightened my arms around her and kissed her gently once,

"I'm fine, Ness. Honestly." I whispered. I turned back to Alice,

"Alice, it's okay. Come on now. I'm fine." I smiled as she glanced up at me.

Just then, a thought occurred to me. A strange time to notice something like this, and I wasn't sure what triggered it, but suddenly I realized that something was missing.

"Hold on," I started slowly, "where are the Denali's and Zafrina?"

"Oh, they're gone. When Alice had the first vision, we thought up en excuse which meant they had to leave. They were worried, but they agreed without question." Carlisle told me with a fond smile for our friends.

"Good." I said. I didn't want them involved in this. Although, I knew they would be furious that we'd kept them out when they found out about it.

Edward flashed a tight smile in agreement. He knew that they were as eager for a fight with the Volturi as Emmett was. Especially the Denali's. But we couldn't put them in danger. We knew that if they stayed, that they would fight with us, and they would get hurt. We couldn't allow that. I was suddenly fiercely grateful that Carlisle had sent them away.

"Okay, so what do we do now? We have to find a way to stop this from happening. We can't just let Jake die." Bella said quietly.

"Hell, no we can't!" Rosalie said with such venom that it took be by surprise, "If I can't bite my little nephew here, then there's no way _Felix_ gets to!" She spit his name with disgust.

I grinned at her, "Thanks, Rose." I chuckled once and she winked at me.

"All right!" Emmett said, clapping his hands together, "What's the plan?"

-------------------------- ----------------------------- ------------------------------ --------------------------

The next few days were filled with planning, and Alice continued to search into the future for any changes. We needed a time scale, we needed to know how long we had. The day Alice called to us, I was in the kitchen with Rose, I making a sandwich, she was cleaning up my mess at the back of me. It was three days after Alice had foreseen my horrific death.

"Jake, Rose, come in here." Alice called to us, just as Rosalie snapped at my hand for making more crumbs.

I laughed at her then stuck my tongue out, waving my sandwich in her face. She rolled her eyes as yet more crumbs flaked off the bread onto the floor. I ducked out of the kitchen with a chuckle before she could take a swing at me. We came into the dining room together, me dodging a swift kick that Rose aimed at my behind. She laughed and winked when I grinned at her. I didn't notice that everyone else was already there, watching us, until Emmett muttered,

"That's going to take some getting used to." His eyes flashed from me to Rose, then back.

"What?" I asked him, my mouth full, glancing down at my sandwich. Surely he was used to my huge apatite by now?

"Not the food, dog. He means me and you actually getting along." Rose told me, mussing my hair as she walked passed to stand next to Emmett.

"Oh, that. Well, yeah, she's not so bad when I stopped focusing on what a huge pain in the ass she was. You know Blondie, you're actually quite funny when you stop all the growling." I grinned at her.

She did growl then, playfully, then she grinned back at me, "You're not so bad yourself actually."

"Okay, okay, wonderful -- we're all friends now." Alice snapped, "But can we please focus?"

She glared around at us all, just daring any one to act up. My grin got bigger as her eyes settled on me. Her lips twitched at the edges as she fought back a smile of her own.

"Sorry, Alice. What's up?" I asked her.

"I was searching for Jane. She knows now that we know they're coming, so they're going to regroup, so to speak. They're going back to Italy. . . To meet up with Demetri." She glanced quickly at Bella, who had gnashed her teeth together at the mention of the name.

"So, does that mean that they're coming here now?" Ness asked, worry in her voice.

"No, not yet. They'll meet up to plan. At first, Demetri didn't want to be involved, he didn't want to defy Aro and the others," Alice explained, "But now he's changed his mind. He's got a serious problem with this family, for whatever reason. He will go to Aro and ask him to re-asses. He will ask him to reconsider coming here for us. But Aro will tell him no, he wants nothing more to do with us. He will not cause us anymore harm apparently." She said, clearly not believing it. "But, Aro will say that he can't stop Demetri and the others doing what they wish. He will tell Demetri to do what he feels is best, but to keep him out of it." Alice made a face, then turned to face Edward.

"Demetri will meet up with Jane, Alec and Felix and they will think up a plan. They know we're expecting them, so they're going to try to surprise us. Not the smartest move, considering what I can do. They'll have just about figured out what they're gong to do. . . And they'll be here in three weeks." Her last words left the air feeling cold.

"Three weeks. . ." Esme repeated in a whisper, almost to herself.

No one spoke for a long moment, then Edward said,

"Okay, all right! Sush, everyone just _relax!_" His eyes were screwed up.

"Um, no one said anything, bro." Emmett said, looking at him like he was crazy.

Edward rolled his eyes at Emmett and lifted his hand to tap his finger tip to his temple.

"Ah, right, yeah. Sorry." Emmett mumbled.

"Carlisle, you actually had an interesting thought." Edward said, turning to his father.

"I did?" Carlisle replied, surprised.

"Yes, You thought '_Maybe we should surprise them.'_ It was fleeting, but I heard it. And I think that's what we have to do." He finished, glancing around at us all.

Everyone stared back at him, not quite understanding what he was getting at, then. . .

"Oh! You mean. . . no? Edward, you can't be serious! That's _way_ too dangerous!" Bella told him.

"There is_ no_ way I'm going to_ Italy!" _Jasper almost yelled at him, getting it the same time as Bella.

There was a murmur of comprehension around the room. _Italy? Is he serious? My brother's gone crazy!_

"Yeah, Italy! That's an idea! Think about it! There's no way they're going to expect us to turn up there! Edward, you're a genius!" Emmett grinned at Edward.

Edward laughed, "Thanks, Em."

"Edward, not to kill Emmett's buzz," Bella began, scowling at Emmett," But trekking off to Italy is a total suicide mission! What if Aro and the others_ decide_ to join them? There aren't enough of us to defeat them. We _will_ lose." Her eyes flickered to Nessie for a short second then back to Edward, "And on their turf! That's just stupid!" She growled the last three words at her love.

"Okay, fine, they've got the edge in Italy, and yes, it would be better if there were more of. . ." He paused, "Oh!" His eyes widened, "Hold on a second!" He told us excitedly.

He flashed out of the room, and for the briefest second we all stared after him in surprise. Then we heard something more surprising. Nessie and Bella gasped, Jasper grinned hugely, and Emmett laughed then hissed "Excellent!" The rest of us just boggled in the direction of the door. We heard Edward open it, then he heard a low growl from outside,

"Now, I _know_ you didn't think you were keeping us out of this!" A female voice scalded, "No way Edward Cullen. We're in!"

-------------------------- ---------------------------- ------------------------------ ---------------------------

"Thought you were getting rid of us, huh Carlisle?" Tanya grinned as she walked into the dining room, followed by the rest of the Denali's.

"Tanya! Awesome!" Emmett walked over and high-fived her.

"Didn't buy the story then, Tanya?" Jasper asked her with a laugh.

"No. We know you better than that. Silly Cullens. To think we would leave when we knew there was obviously something wrong. We thought _you_ knew _us_ better than that?" She asked, looking disapprovingly around at us all. We all just grinned back at her.

"So, where did you go? Where have you been for the last ten days?" Alice asked them.

"Well. . ." Kate began sheepishly, " We kinda hid out at Jake and Nessie's. Sorry, guys." She said with an embarrassed shrug.

Nessie laughed, "That's alright, Kate. We weren't using it were we? I'm glad you stayed." She told them.

"Thanks, Ness. Now, I do want to hear all about your honeymoon. The good parts at least. But first, you" She jabbed a finger at Edward, "Explain."

Edward told the Denali's the whole story. From Alice's first vision, to the idea he had just before they got here. They knew the last part, they'd been listening outside. They cringed when Edward described the vision Alice had had of us in the meadow, and when he explained that Alec, Jane and Felix were to meet up with Demetri, Tanya and Carmen ground their teeth, just like Bella. They were geared up and actually excited about the impending fight.

"You do realize, though, that when we decimate these four, and we will destroy them, "Carmen said through clenched teeth, "That the other's will come looking after us?"

"Yeah, I'm counting on it." Uncle Emmett with a grin.

"Emmett. . ." Rose groaned, rolling her eyes at him.

"Ah, come on, Rose! We won't get another chance like this. They've separated. Once we take down Jane and her friends, the others will be easy!" He told her. She couldn't really argue.

"Jake," Edward said suddenly, You had better let Sam and your pack know what's going on. They'll want to know."

"Yeah, suppose you're right. I'll go do that now." I kissed Nessie once quickly, "Won't be long." I told her.

I didn't go far. I phased outside the house and listened.

_Jacob._ Sam greeted me. _How was the honeymoon?_

_Hey Sam. It was great, thanks. Where's everyone else? You the only one who's phased, or is everyone else sleeping? _

The silence in his head was screaming at me.

_Sam. . . _I began slowly, _What's going on? Where is everyone?_

_Jacob. . . Haven't you heard? I thought Billy would have told the Cullens to let you know?_

_Know what? I haven't spoken to Billy, and I don't think the Cullens have either. _What_ is going on, Sam?_

He was quiet for another second.

_The pack. . . _He started, but then he changed his train of thought, _Seth's gone, Jake._

I took a second to process that.

_Gone? What do you mean_ gone_? Do we know where he is?_

_No, we can't hear him. You can only hear within your own pack, you know that. And you haven't been here._

_Okay, fine. You can't hear him, but what about Embry? Or Quil? They can!_

He hesitated again, mentally stuttering over something.

_No,_ He whispered, _They can't. Not anymore._

_Huh? . . What? Why?_ Well, that didn't make any sense.

_Because. . . He's not a part of their pack anymore. _He said slowly.

_What are you talking about, Sam?!_

_Your pack. . . They aren't yours anymore, Jacob. Seth still is, because he hasn't been home to make the choice. But the others have joined me again._

_What?! No! They wouldn't. . . Why? _As soon as I asked, I knew the answer.

_Leah_ We whispered together. I could hear the pain in Sam's voice as he said her name.

Now I understood perfectly. The pleasantries at my wedding had just been for show. Paul was the only one who showed me how he really felt. They _all_ blamed me for Leah's death, so they had left me, abandoned me. And I couldn't blame them. But I could feel my heart breaking. It felt as though little chunks of it were being ripped off as I thought of each of my pack, leaving me. I composed myself. I wouldn't let Sam feel my pain.

_Okay, fine. If that's how they feel, then. . .sure. I guess I can't blame them_ I paused, taking a deep breath.

_I am sorry, Jacob_ Sam whispered

_Sure, sure. _I mumbled, _Listen, Sam, I need to tell you something, too._

I explained the situation to him, feeling his shock and repulsion as I thought about Alice's horrifying vision. He calmed himself in time for me to finish.

_Ah. . .I see. Well. . .We'll keep our eyes peeled. Thanks for the warning. _

_Sure. Thanks for the. . . Info, Sam._

_No problem. Be safe, Jacob._

I felt him phase out. I sat on the porch, trying to work out everything Sam had told me. I was so lost in my own thoughts, that I didn't hear the other voice at first,

_Jacob. . . _It whispered

_Seth?. . .Seth! _Oh, god it was good to hear his voice!

_Yeah, it's me. I'm not staying though._

_What do you mean you're not staying?_

_I mean, I'm not staying in your head for long. I just wanted to tell you something._

'_Kay. What's up, Kid? What's on your mind?_

_I just wanted to say goodbye, Jake. _His tone was cold and flat.

_Goodbye?. . . Seth?. . .What. . ?_

_I'm joining Sam, too. I wont be loyal to you now. I don't want to belong to your pack anymore. _He paused _Your vampire's killed my sister. You know I love the Cullens. . . And You. But I loved my sister. . . And you let Tanya Kill her! _He finished in a scream.

I winced. _No, Seth. It wasn't like that! Please, just let me. . ._

_No_ He interrupted me _I won't listen to your excuses, Jacob. You know, I'm not coming home, because I'm afraid of what I might do if I get too close to Tanya. And I don't know if I really want to hurt her._

He was silent for a second, deliberating whether or not he wanted to cause Tanya harm.

_No, I don't want to hurt her. Not physically anyway. But I will _never_ forgive her. She took my sister from me. My Mom's heart is in pieces, so you can thank Tanya for that._

_Seth. . . I'm so sorry. . ._ I whispered

_No, don't, Jacob. I'm not interested. _His tone was flat and cold again, _I won't ever forgive you either, you know. You let her destroy what was left of my family. I _hate _you for that, Jacob Black. Always remember that. I _hate_ you for what you let happen. I will never forgive you. _He said again, _Goodbye, Jacob._

_I'm sorry_. I whispered again, just a second too late. He was gone.

I was alone. Completely alone. For the first time since I became a werewolf, there were no voices in my head, and it was surprisingly lonely. I had no pack. All my brother's had gone. I could feel my heart tearing. The searing pain made it difficult to breathe. I could feel the sobs rising in my chest, but I couldn't take a deep breath to calm them. Huge tears ran down my cheeks and my body shook painfully. I knew that Edward would have heard everything, but he didn't come out. He left me alone with my pain.

I was alone. Completely alone.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve; Renesmee

Daddy's head snapped up and his eyes zoned in as he listened to the silent conversation taking place outside. Jacob had gone to tell Sam and his pack what was going on, but it was taking longer than I thought. Just as I was about to ask Daddy what was going on, he groaned,

"Oh, Jacob." He whispered. His voice was filled with a strange kind of regret.

"What? Is he okay?" I asked, worried.

"No," Daddy said, his voice still a whisper, "Not really."

"What happened?" Momma asked, tense.

"I'm sure he'll tell you himself, just give him a few moments." Daddy told her.

No one said anymore as we waited for Jake to come back inside. When the door finally opened, I ran to him,

"Jake? Are you alright? What happened?" I breathed.

His eye lashes were wet and fresh tears glistened on his cheeks. He gazed down at me and I could see the pain in his eyes.

"Can we go home?" He asked, his voice husky, "I want to go home."

"Sure we can. Just a second." I walked back into the dining room, expecting Jake to follow, but he stayed by the door.

"We're going to head home," Daddy nodded sadly. "We'll see you in the morning."

I hugged my family and wished them goodnight, then walked back to Jacob. He was waiting outside porch and he reached for my hand just as I reached for his. I didn't ask again what happened. We walked home in silence, except for Jacob's occasional sob or deep breath. I wanted to talk whatever had caused him this pain and squash it. I wanted to take whatever made my Jacob hurt like this, and kill it.

When we entered the house, Jacob walked straight to the bedroom. He stripped off his clothes without a word and climbed into bed as I watched him silently from the doorway. After a moment, I followed, and crawled into bed next to him. As soon as my hand touched his arm, he grasped at me and pulled me to him, wrapping his arms tightly around me.

"Jake," I whispered into the darkness, "What happened? Please tell me." I almost begged.

He took a deep breath then cleared his throat.

"Seth. . . " He began as I quietly as I had spoken.

He told his story and I listened without interruption. My heart broke for him, more and more, as the story went on. Before he had finished, he was sobbing again.

". . . then he said, '_I hate you for that, Jacob Black. Always remember that. I hate you for what you let happen. I will never forgive you!'_ And I don't think he ever will, Ness. I don't think he ever will." He finished, a fresh sob breaking free.

I was crying with him. This was _not_ his fault! He didn't kill Leah. Nor did he _allow_ it to happen. It wasn't something any of us could've prevented, it happened so quickly. There was no point in telling Jacob any of this, though. He wouldn't listen, he blamed himself anyway. So, all I said was,

"I'm sorry, Jacob. I'm so very sorry." I tightened my arms around him.

He didn't respond right away. He let the tears slow a little first, then eventually - in a voice so filled with pain, it made my own heart ache - he said,

"I'm alone, Nessie. They've _all_ left me. All of my brothers. They're my family, and they've left me."

"You are _not_ alone." I told him quietly, reaching to kiss his neck once, "You will _always _have me."

"I know," He breathed, "I love you so much. You are my whole life now. Everything, and the most important thing to me." He paused, then whispered, "Thank you."

"For what?" I asked.

"For loving me, too" He replied simply.

-------------------------- -------------------------- ----------------------------- ------------------------------

Neither of us got much sleep that night. Jacob tossed and turned a lot, and in the morning, neither of us felt as though we had slept at all. We were both quiet and tired as we dressed and headed up to the big house. When we walked in the door, we heard Momma's laughter echoing through the house and followed the sound into the sitting room.

"What's going on in here?" Jake asked as we walked in.

Momma was sitting on the couch with Uncle Jasper. Daddy and Aunt Alice were sat cross-legged on the floor on either side of the coffee table, a chess board in between them. They were staring at each other intently, both of them scowling. Aunt Alice started to make a move, and Daddy grinned back at her. She growled quietly as she foreseen the move he would make in retaliation. Momma and Uncle Jasper giggled at her.

"Why do you play?" Momma asked them, "It always ends the same way!"

Half a second later, Aunt Alice groaned and surrendered. Daddy laughed triumphantly and told Aunt Alice,

"Count it!" He stuck his tongue out at her.

"Edward! That's not nice. Don't be such a bad sport! Alice must have had enough of your gloating by now. It must get boring after. . . More than a century of it." Momma broke off with a snicker.

"You know what, Edward? One of these days, you're gonna get tired of beating me!" Aunt alice folded her arms across her chest and her face slipped into a pout.

"I'm sorry, Alice, that was rude. I'm sure you will beat me one day. I mean, my luck can't last forever. . . Can it?" Daddy asked her with a grin.

Aunt Alice's eyes unfocused for a second then she looked back at him, her pout returning,

"I'm not telling you!" We all laughed at her.

"Okay, okay, enough with the games." Aunt Rose said, walking in with Uncle Emmett and the Denali's. "We need to talk about this whole. . . _Italy _thing." She made a face.

None of us were overly keen on going to Italy, but when I thought about it, it did make more sense. There is no way that the Volturi would expect us to go looking for _them_. Even though there were only four of them, I think they were still confident that they could win this fight. Of course, they didn't account for the Denali's being here, which gave us the edge by ten. But, even with that advantage, I was pretty sure that they weren't too concerned. Grandpa obviously thought the same,

"They must think they can win, even with the disadvantage in numbers, or they wouldn't risk coming here." He said, glancing at everyone in turn.

Jacob sat as far away from Tanya as was possible with this many bodies in the one room. He didn't want to hurt her feelings, so he acted nonchalant about it, but I noticed, and Daddy heard his thoughts. He smiled at Jacob, a little sadly, but didn't say anything. If any of the Denali's noticed, they didn't say either. We talked over every option, discussed every possibility. We knew that the Volturi would be counting on Alec to rid us of all our senses, so we had to find a way, either to avoid it, or take him out first.

"I want Demetri." Daddy growled, when we were dolling out opponents, "What about Felix? He's they're best fighter." He asked.

"Dibs!" Uncle Emmett called, raising his hand. " He's mine."

Uncle Jasper laughed at his brother, "Mind if I give you a hand with that, bro?"

"Sure, you can help, if there's enough for both of us." Uncle Emmett grinned back

"I think we really do have to concentrate on Alec though," Grandma said, "Once he's gotten through Bella's shield, we won't be able to defend against him." She didn't sound worried, she sounded business-like. It was strange to hear Grandma use that tone of voice.

"Alec's mine." Momma told her. "I'm the only one who he can't hurt with his little trick, so it has to be me. If I take him out first, the rest will be easy." She said with a confident smile.

"And your plan will work, Bella." Aunt Alice grinned back at her.

"Alright, okay, no," She said, raising her hands to quiet us, "I know what we have to do now. Bella's given me an idea. Let me just see if it'll work. . ." She zoned out for a second as she looked for the Volturi's reaction to her plan.

"Ah, yes, good thinking, Alice." Daddy smiled grimly, "Okay, this will be easier than I thought. You see, Alice thought that since Bella is the only one who can't be harmed by Alec or Jane, that if she and just a couple of others were to be there at the start, it would be easier to confuse them. Of course, they wont be expecting any of us to go to Italy, but when they do discover that we're there, and only Bella, Emmett, Jasper and Tanya are there at first, it'll catch them off guard." He looked at Momma uneasily. "I don't particularly like the thought of leaving you there without me, love, but it seems like the best option."

"Yes, absolutely. And once I take out Alec - and I will take him out - the rest of you will appear and finish the job?" She smiled back at Daddy.

"Exactly. Now. . . Alice can see that if you are all under Bella's shield to start with, this will irritate them. Alec will try to blind you all, but obviously it wont work. If you retract your shield, Bella, without them noticing, they'll try for a physical attack, thinking that their mental gifts wont work. This is when you - as you put it - take Alec out." He grinned at Momma.

"Sweet. Then what? We jump out and 'rar' at them?" Uncle Emmett chuckled.

Daddy laughed back at him, "No, not quite. But we will. . ." He stopped talking abruptly and turned to look at Aunt Alice. "Alice. . .What was that? Go back."

Daddy concentrated on whatever Aunt Alice could see. Suddenly he stiffened and a low hiss escaped his teeth. Everyone's breath stopped, including mine and Jake's.

"What? Edward, what can she see?" Grandpa asked him quietly.

He hesitated for a second, then he and Aunt Alice said together, "They've changed their mind. They're coming here. Now."

No one spoke for a moment. No one breathed. Aunt Alice's eyes re-focused and Daddy's eyes locked with Momma's.

"Now? Like. . . _right_ now?" Tanya asked eventually, glancing around her.

"Tomorrow morning. At ten." Aunt Alice breathed.

"They're not alone." Daddy said, even quieter than Aunt Alice. "They're bringing others."

"Others? Who, others? Aro?" Grandpa asked, suddenly on his feet.

"No, it's not the Ancients. I don't know these people. Deffinatly vampire's though. _Witnesses_ again, no doubt." Daddy replied with revulsion.

"Witnesses." Eleazar and Garrett snorted together. Carmen and Aunt Rose hissed in synchronization.

The general thought was the same. These vampire's were not coming to merely watch this time, they were their army.

"Alice. . ." Grandpa began quietly, "Will your plan still work?" He asked her.

"No, there's too many of them for that now." She told him gravely.

"How many?" Uncle Emmett asked her.

"Six." She said right away.

Uncle Emmett snorted, "Six! That's easy, there are more than enough of us! They'll be no match at all for all of us!"

Aunt Rose rolled her eyes at him, "Emmett, it's not quite _easy_. Four of them would have been _easy_. This could be more tricky."

"Well, it doesn't really change a lot does it?" Momma asked, "We still have to take out Alec first, don't we? He's the biggest problem?"

"Yes, Bella's right, we still have to work out how to take Alec out first. And I think your plan will still work that way, Edward." Grandpa replied. "Having us under Bella's shield will irritate them, and you're right that they'll then go for a physical attack. It's just thatnow there are more of them to worry about."

"Okay," Kate said, speaking for the first time. I had almost forgotten the Denali's were there, "So, there's ten of them and fourteen of us. Emmett's right, this _will_ be easy. As long as we get rid of Alec and Jane first, then rest will be no problem at all." She grinned at Uncle Emmett.

Garret laughed, "You're a brave girl, Katie." He winked at his mate.

"Yeah, that's the spirit, Kate!" Uncle Emmett said, grinning back at her. Then he turned to Jake, "We could use back-up just incase, don't you think? Jake, do you think your pack would be willing to. . ." He trailed off as he remembered what happened last night, "Sorry." He mumbled looking at the floor.

"No, it's fine." Jake said quietly, 'I'll ask Sam. He'll want to know, regardless."

Jacob kissed my head lightly then left to phase to talk to Sam. His expression was defeated. He didn't want to ask Sam for any favors, I knew that. But this _was_ the pack's problem, too. Or at least, that's what they had told us the last time. Would that still be the same now? I wasn't so sure.

Jake wasn't gone long, maybe five minutes. I read his expression when he walked back in, it didn't look good.

"So?" I asked him, already knowing the answer.

He shook his head, "They don't want to be a part of it. Sam said. . ." He hesitated and took a deep breath, "He said that it's not their fight. He said I made my choice the moment I gave Tanya a bye for Leah's death." His eye's flickered to Tanya's face for a fraction of a second, then down to the floor, "So, they wont help. We're on our own."

Tanya walked over to Jake slowly and stopped just inches from his face. He didn't look up so she tilted his head up with her fingertips.

"Jacob, listen to me." She said quietly, "I will forever be sorry for the pain I have caused you. I will never forgive myself, and I hope that you never forgive me either, because I don't deserve it. What I done was inexcusable, and I _am_ sorry. After this battle is fought, we will leave. We wont come back here, unless you want us to. We'll stay away until you call for us to come back. And if you ever do, we'll be here in a heart beat." Jacob took a deep breath but didn't speak. "I love you, Jacob. You are my family, and my friend. But, if you can't see me that way now, or ever again, I will, of course, understand that. Don't feel that you need to humor me, Jake. If you're mad, then be mad. I have caused you more hurt than you ever deserved. If we both live for one hundred thousand years, I will never stop trying to make up for that. I'm sorry." She finished in a whisper.

During Tanya's apology, the rest of us had moved away from them inconspicuously, pretending to see something more interesting across the room. Jake took another deep breath then replied,

"It will take time, Tanya. I'm sorry, too. I told you that I didn't blame you for Leah's death, and I still don't. But I can't help but feel resentful for what's happened as a consequence of what you done. My pack have deserted me, they don't want me anymore. I know you are my family, but they were, too. And now, they want nothing more to do with me. All because of what happened here that night. A lot of hearts have been broken because of what happened, and they'll never heal, Tanya, never." He paused, and stared into her eyes for a second, her face was crumpled in pain, "But I will forgive you, eventually. I'm just not sure how long it will take. Don't stay away from here because of me, I don't want the rest of the family to suffer. Just, please, give me some time. I _do_ love you, you_ are_ my family. But it will take time before things can be the same. Tomorrow we will fight as a family, and when you leave, you will leave as my family. Just give me some time." He told her again, a tiny smile on his face.

"I'm sorry I've broken your heart, Jacob. I hate myself for that. I always will. I'm so sorry, so, so sorry." Her body shook with silent sobs and she dropped her head onto Jake's chest.

Jacob patted her back gingerly a few times the straightened her up. He took a step back, but kept his hands on the top of her arms and whispered,

"I am, too. Doesn't change much though, huh?"

None of us had a response for that.

----------------------------- -------------------------- ----------------------------- ---------------------------

The family split a while after that, although we all went hunting. The Denali's went further out, but the rest of us stayed close to home. No one mentioned Jake and Tanya's conversation, but it hung in the air. Of course I hated that Jake was in pain, but I couldn't help but feel sorry for Tanya, too. She looked broken up when they had left. And Jake hated to be the one to make her feel that way, but she had wanted him to tell her how he felt, and so he did. It wasn't easy for him. But, he shook it off, and concentrated on the pressing matter in hand. So, he and I went hunting with Momma and Daddy, and he pretended to forget all about it.

After a few hours of talking and discussing, we had a plan. It was different from what we first thought, but I was confident that it could work. It wasn't going to be easy, as Uncle Emmett declared, but it would work. Daddy kept asking me if I was okay, the whole time we were hunting, he was worried that I was hiding thoughts from him. I assured him that I was fine, I wasn't scared. Actually, though, I was terrified. But again, it wasn't fear for me, it was for my family, my Jacob. I couldn't stand the thought of any one of them getting hurt. I couldn't live without Jake. I wouldn't.

That thought, Daddy did hear. He glanced over at me, angled his head towards Momma then nodded very slightly. He was telling me that he knew how I felt, that he couldn't be without Momma either. I smiled at him, and he smiled back, but it didn't reach his eyes. He stared at Momma, terror on his face as he quite obviously thought about the possibility of losing her. He gulped loudly and took a deep breath. I knew why; because it was too painful to think about.

After we had hunted, Jake and I headed home. Daddy thought we should stay in the big house, but I wanted to go home. I needed to spend the night with Jacob, alone. As soon as we were in the house, he pulled me into his arms. He held me close, but leaned back so he could look into my eyes. We didn't speak, we just stared. It was strange, the feelings that stirred inside me when Jacob looked at me that way. The desire hit me with breathtaking intensity, and my heart hammered in my chest. My eyes raked over every inch of his face. I studied his beautiful black eyes, framed with long, thick lashes. Right now, those eyes burned with desire matching my own. My eyes followed the straight line of his nose, his high, prominent cheekbones, and lastly, the shape of his full, broad lips. I lifted my hand to gently trace my finger across his lips, and he closed his eyes and sighed at the touch. I could hear his heartbeat pick up, it was beating almost as fast as mine. His breathing sped as I ran my fingers over his closed eye lids, down the side of his face, and along his jaw, and down his throat, before my hand settled over his heart. He was the most important thing I had, my most precious possession. And my most beautiful. I loved his human side, and his wolf side. He was my own personal protector, the brightest ray of sunshine every day of my life. As I looked at him now, I imagined our whole life together. I rested my hand against Jacobs cheek so he could watch this vision with me. I saw us both, in our home, making happy memories. I felt a surge of heat as I thought of us in our bedroom, our bodies tangled together as he kissed me and made me sigh, like only Jacob could. And I felt a glimmer of surprise disappointment as I pictured two beautiful, black haired children that were ours. Children that would never be. Until that moment, I felt that my life with Jacob was complete. He was everything I wanted, and all I would ever need. But that fleeting thought had my mind wandering. Jacob took my hand from his face and placed it back over his heart. He broke the silence at last,

"Nessie, we could speak to Carlisle. You don't know if it's possible or not. You have blood in your veins, you're body changes. You don't know what could happen." He told me in a whisper.

"My body doesn't change anymore, Jacob. I stopped changing a long time ago. Yes, I have blood in my veins, and yes, my body changes, _inside,_ but I'm not built to carry children, my body can't adjust that way." I told him just as quietly.

"How do you know?" He asked, his voice persuasive now, "No one like you has ever had the opportunity to find out. The other females like you aren't the same as you, they aren't as. . . Human. We don't know what's possible." His eyes bore into mine.

I hesitated. It was a thought that had never entered my head before, not even for a second. But now that it had, it stood out at the front of my mind, screaming at me. I imagined again those dark haired children, with Jacob's eyes and my smile. They would be precious, and loved, and beautiful. But, no! They could never be! How could they be? My body _couldn't_ change that way, not on the outside. And I didn't age. What did that mean for me reproductively? Did it mean that when I stopped aging, I stopped being able to have children? Or was I never able to have them? That seemed most likely. But then. . . Could it be different? Yes, my skin was tough, impenetrable; vampire skin from my father, but it was also warm, and sort of soft, too, human-like from my mother. And Jacob was right, I did have blood in my veins, and my body, on the inside, changed like any other female. Any other _human _female anyway. I had periods like any other human teenage girl. Would that ever change then? Was it possible? Would I even dare dream about such things? I thought about it for a long moment. Jacob didn't speak, he just let me think. My quick mind had me at a decision in a few moments.

"Okay," I told Jacob warily, "We'll wait. We have to get tomorrow out of the way first, and then we'll speak to Grandpa. But, Jake, this might never happen. I think it's probably impossible. It doesn't sound feasible. I'm half vampire, and vampire's can't conceive, Jake, obviously."

"Yes, but you're also half human. It might be that the human side of you can, Ness. Like I said, there's no one like you who's ever tried, so how can we know? Let's just ask Carlisle. And if it's not possible, then it's not. You are more than enough for me. You will always be more than I need." He told me with a sweet smile.

"Okay, Jake. We'll talk to him. I promise." I smiled back, but I wasn't confident. This seemed impossible. It had to be. Surely it would take magic, or a miracle for something like this happened. And after all, this world wasn't make believe.

"So. . ." Jake started slowly, "We're not thinking about that right now. . .But don't you think it'll be fun to practice?" He asked, a cheeky grin on his face.

I didn't get a chance to respond. My lips were suddenly very busy.

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	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen; Jacob

I woke to a banging on the front door the next morning. It was disorientating. It took me a few second to realize where the noise was coming from. When I registered, I woke Ness - she slept like the dead - jumped out of bed, and darted downstairs.

"Jacob, Nessie, get _up!_" Alice, of course. "Come on, you two! We wont wait for you all day! Get up, get up, get _up!" _She hammered her tiny fists on the door again.

"Alright, Alice! Relax, we're up! Yeesh! It's lucky we don't have neighbors. What's with you?!" I asked her angrily as I opened the door.

"Jake, I told you. We don't have all day to wait for you two to surface. Get moving. We need you at the house. You have ten minutes. Where's Ness?" She asked, peeking around me.

I closed the door slightly so she couldn't see past me. She didn't need to see the mess that Nessie and I had made in the sitting room last night. My face flushed slightly as I remembered.

Before I could respond though, she added, "By the way, you do know you're naked, don't you?"

I ignored the red hot blush rising in my cheeks and hid behind the door, answering her first question.

"She's in bed, Alice. It's early. We were _asleep._ That's what _normal_ people - people who sleep anyway - do at. . .What time is it actually?" I asked impatiently.

"Six thirty." She said, unabashed.

"Six thirty! Alice, it's the middle of the night! Leave me alone, I'm going back to bed." I tried to shut the door on her, but she wouldn't have it. She stuck her foot between the door and the frame and forced it back open.

"No. I will not leave you alone. You need to get your butts back to the house, now. Move!" She stalked away, then called back over her shoulder, "Ten minutes, Jacob. And don't think I wont come back here!"

I groaned at her, muttering "Control freak" under my breath.

I heard her invisible voice from the trees yell back, "I heard that!"

I groaned again and slammed the door shut. I heard Nessie's tinkling laugh drifting down from the bedroom.

"Forgot to put clothes on, huh wolf man?" She teased.

My cheeks flamed back up again as I walked up the stairs. In the bedroom, Ness was already dressed and waiting.

"Let's go, Jake. She _will_ come back here if we're not there in ten minutes, you know she will." She said, still laughing.

I just harrumphed at her. I dressed in the first clothes my hands touched when I reached into the closet and joined Ness in a minute, ready to go.

"Ah, so you decided to put clothes on then?" She asked, struggling to contain a smile.

"Aw, stop it. That was so embarrassing! If I'd known she was gonna be knocking on the door at six thirty in the morning, I would've been more prepared. Note to self; Never sleep in the nude. P.s, you could've warned me." I rolled my eyes when Ness laughed again. I was glad she was enjoying my discomfort.

"Come on. Where would the fun have been in that? Now, let's go." She grabbed my hand and we sped out of the house.

When we reached the house, we heard a lot of talking. There were several conversations taking place all over the sitting room. Bella and Edward were by the door discussing the best way to get to Alec again. Tanya, Kate, Carmen and Alice were muttering quietly to each other at the fire place. Rose, Esme and Carlisle were sitting down, going over the plan once more. Em and Jasper were standing in front of the T.V arguing. Emmett was trying to get Jasper to watch a basketball game with him, and Jasper was trying to tell him there were really more important things to worry about. Jasper threw his hands in the air, exasperated, as Emmett pleaded with him. I rolled my eyes at them. Nothing ever bothered Emmett. He wasn't scared of anything. He once told me that the only thing he had a real fear of was losing Rose. It was a few years ago when all the girls had gone hunting. I had told him how difficult it was for me when Nessie wasn't close, when I couldn't see her. And he had told me that it was the same for him with Rosalie. Emmett was always so cool about everything that this information caught me off guard. He said that he had an irrational fear that someday she might be taken away from him. That was the only thing that bothered him about things like the impending fight today; not that he might get hurt, but that Rose might. I could empathize. I wasn't scared for myself today, even after Alice's horrific vision. I was terrified that something might happen to Nessie. I couldn't be without her. I had never gone a day since she was born without seeing her. Most of the time, I had spend all day with her. The thought of not having her in my life, in my arms every night, scared the hell out of me.

I shook my head to get rid of those thoughts and walked with Ness over to Edward and Bella,

"Morning, guys." I said with a yawn. "Or should I say good evening?" I asked, scowling at my watch.

They both laughed. "Good morning." Edward said, "Awake. . . And dressed I see, Jake." They snickered, along with Ness.

"Ha ha." I looked down, the flush returning. I muttered, "Thanks a lot, Alice." and I heard her giggle from across the room.

"Okay, everyone here? Good. Let's go over this once more" Carlisle called to us all.

Garrett and Eleazar appeared from outside to join us.

"So, does everyone know what they're doing? Is everyone prepared?" He looked around at us all and we nodded in response. Emmett grinned, he was excited.

"Good. So, we decided that we'll stick with the plan from last night? Only, we wont separate. Bella, you'll have us all in your shield. Kate, you'll be at the spear point, flanked by Emmett and Jasper. Once Jane and Alec have tried to hit us with their. . . Little tricks, as Bella put it, Bella, you will pull your shield back ever so slightly, so that Kate is exposed." Carlisle grimaced. He didn't like the thought of any of us being exposed to them. " You, Kate, will then shock Alec with your highest voltage," He flashed her a grin, "then Bella will expand her shield back over you immediately."

Bella smiled back and Kate said, "Got it, Carlisle. We're ready!" She grinned at him. She was as excited as Emmett.

We ran through the rest of the plan once, then twice, just to make sure we all had it right. We had articulated every move, thought of every possibility. We had Alice search to see if it would work, and she assured us that it would. None of us where overly worried, but, of course, we were all nervous. There was still a possibility that something would go wrong, and one of us could get hurt. I shuddered again as I thought about the chances.

With just under an hour to go, we headed out to the clearing. This scene was becoming all too familiar. Although, today, we would make sure that this situation could never repeat itself. After today, it would all be over. As we waited, we barely spoke. Nessie and I sat on the hard ground with Bella and Edward, staring at each other as if it might be the last time. All too soon, we heard the sound we had been waiting for. The sound of four long cloaks brushing lightly over the grass.

-------------------------- -------------------------- ------------------------------ -----------------------------

We looked at each other one more time and took our positions. I whispered my 'I love you' to Ness and kissed her gently. It felt wrong to be letting her hand go with danger in front of us.

"Ah, Cullens, you were expecting us, it would appear." A voice said. There was no surprise in the tone.

"We have a good informant, Jane." Alice told her, her own voice ice cold.

"And so you came to greet us, how nice!" Jane said again.

"If that's what you want to believe." Emmett muttered and Kate Sniggered,

"Well, if you did not come out here to welcome us, then why did you?" Another voice asked. Alec.

Bella growled menacingly beside me and I heard Edward telling her to be calm.

"You know why we're here, Alec. So, why don't we quit the pleasantries, because you know neither side means it, and just get down to what we came here for." Emmett said, He sounded bored.

Our formation tightened, everyone stiffened. I felt Bella's shield contract against each of us, keeping us safe. For now. Jane, Alec, Felix and Demetri were only a few feet away now, and they stopped together.

"Get ready." Jasper breathed from in front of me.

Bella laughed then, one short burst of sound and I looked at her in surprise, my eye brows raised.

"Alec, surely you know better than that by now? Your mist can't reach us. It won't touch us. Remember?" She grinned at him and he growled.

I looked at my feet to see, as expected, Alec's sensory deprivation mist sneaking away from us. His face was contorted into a hateful sneer at Bella. He took a tiny step back and slipped into a crouch. All fourteen of us mirrored him. There was no sound from Felix or Demetri who stood behind the twins.

"Where's your friends, Jane? I thought you were bringing an army?" Emmett asked with a sneer to match Alec's.

"Ah, why, they are here." She waved her hand around her, a cruel smile on her face.

Suddenly, there was noise from all around me. Rustling of leaves, snapping of twigs, growls coming from all directions. Each of us looked around to see vampires coming out of every opening in the trees in a wide circle, surrounding us. There were much more than six. I glanced at Alice, who's face was twisted in confusion. Her eyes unfocused for a second, then she hissed.

"How did you do that?" Edward asked Jane through his teeth. "Why did Alice see you bringing six vampires with you? How did you get through her visions?" He spoke quickly, his voice filled with rage.

Jane laughed, a tinkling, little girl's giggle. "Well, you see, Edward, we happened to acquire a special little friend of our own since the last time we met here. Come, Lisa." She called.

A small girl instantly appeared at her side. She couldn't have been more than sixteen, and she was even smaller than Alice. Her face was stretched into a smug smile, until she looked at Jane, then her face lit up with admiration.

"This," Jane placed her hand on the little vampire's shoulder, "Is Lisa. She has a _very_ special gift indeed, don't you dear?" She turned to the girl, "Shall I explain your gift to our friends?" Jane looked at Lisa like she was her most prized possession.

"You see, Lisa here, has an uncanny ability to tap into the gifts of others." She said, turning back to us, "We told her about your little seeing the future thing, Alice, and just like that," Jane snapped her fingers, "She was inside your head." She smiled blindingly at us all, like we were all the best of friends and she was sharing good news.

"She altered your visions, made you see what we wanted you to. -- I'll let you into a little secret. . ." She leaned forward dramatically, and told us in a whisper, "We were never in Paris. We four never disobeyed Aro. Demetri was always coming with us, and the mongrel's death in the meadow wasn't real." She giggled again, "It was all a trick!" Alec laughed beside her.

"She can get inside your head, too, you know, Edward." She went on conversationally, "That's why you never heard their thoughts as they approached." She waved her hand again, signaling to all the vampires surrounding us. "That's also why you didn't hear the thoughts of our other friends."

Just as she said that, more figures appeared out of the trees behind them. I recognized them at once. Aro and Renata, Marcus and Caius. I snarled harshly at them.

"Ooh, scary. This would be the dog, then?" Felix laughed, speaking for the first time.

"So, you see, _dear_ Cullens. We have you. We finally have you! You are out numbered. By far. Feels good, doesn't it?" She asked those behind her with a laugh.

That cocky little snicker did it. My hands trembled and a red mist descended in front of my eyes. My whole body vibrated and I felt my human self burst into wolf. I snarled again and the sound echoed off the trees. A flash of shock clouded Jane's face, then she composed herself again in the same second.

"Oh dear, this does not end well for you, Cullens." Jane said, her gloating smile back.

"Aro. . ." Carlisle whispered suddenly, "Why? Why are you doing this to us again?" The pain in his voice was clear.

"Carlisle, this is not some kind of personal vendetta!" Aro laughed, as though the idea was silly. "But, come now dear Carlisle, you know as well as we do that the girl is a danger. She may not have hurt anyone yet, but she will. You know she will. And what if she and her. . . Mate were to breed? No, no, we can't allow that now can we? I do not wish to hurt you, and so, if you are willing to surrender the girl to us, then no harm will come to you or the rest of your family. What do you say, my friend?" He smiled at Carlisle as though he were offering him tea! Edward and Bella growled menacingly at Aro.

And the usually composed, calm center of our family, Carlisle, snarled so fiercely at Aro that my heart jumped. He leapt at him in one long bound, a terrifying roar ripping from his throat. Jasper and Emmett got their arms around him just before he slammed into Aro and dragged him back. They held him on his feet, their arms holding him as he thrashed against them, struggling to get free.

"Carlisle! No, stop, please!" Esme yelled at him. He calmed instantly when he heard the panic in the voice of his wife.

His breathing was ragged and his face was still screwed up with rage, but he stepped free of Jasper and Emmett's vice grip and walked backwards to stand next to Esme. His eyes never left Aro's face. Through the whole thing, the guard smiled as though they were watching an amusing child throw a tantrum. I wanted nothing more in that moment than to sink my teeth into any one of them and tear them to shreds. I could taste the rage on my tongue and a ringing started up in my ears.

"Now, we are sorry for this, my dear friends. But, it's our duty to keep our secret safe. This is the only way. This is how it has to be." Aro closed his eyes in a look of fake regret. He was loving this as much as Jane was, we knew that.

Each one of us growled in sync and slipped deeper into our crouch. I allowed my eyes to flash to Nessie for one fleeting second, and seen her glancing at me, too. "I love you." She mouthed. And I bowed my head, she knew I was saying, "I love you, too." I forced my eyes away from her and focused on my target. Bella, Kate and Carlisle had Alec covered, and Jane was the only other one who's gift could hinder us. So, she was mine. Garrett and Eleazar tensed next to me, their eyes on the same bull's-eye. Jane's throat. I looked around at my family as we all prepared to fight. Emmett was crouched low, his eyes intently focused on Demetri, as were Jasper's. Edward's threatening stare was for Demetri. Alice, Rose and Carmen's eyes moved from Aro, to Marcus then to Caius. Their target wasn't so sure. We were outnumbered. Greatly. We would fight. And we would lose. I tore my mind away from Ness, from the idea I had in my head now to grab her and run, and focused solely on the deadly task in hand. Would any of us survive today? I prayed that, if even one of us did, it would be Nessie. A world without her was no world at all. She had to survive. So I would fight for my own life, and for hers. If I had to die to save her then, of course, I would do that and it would be the easiest sacrifice I could make. Not a sacrifice at all, in fact, because I was born for her. Born to love her, born to protect her. And I would do that until I took my very last breath. But, in the end, would that be enough?

All around me, my family whispered their "I love you's" and touched hands for the last time, then we all turned our total attention to our enemy in front of us. But just as we prepared to strike. . .

_Jacob. Don't move. Stay exactly where you are._

I risked a quick glance at Edward to see if he heard, and he had, he was looking at me, his eyes wide. It was Sam! Edward whispered the message in a flash to Bella, who passed it on. It went around the group before a second was up and the Volturi had time to notice.

_Sam! Stay wherever you are! Don't come here, it's too dangerous!_

_Shush, Jacob. This is our fight, too. _

_But, Sam. . . _

_No, Jake. _He interrupted me, _I told you. This is our fight, too. Now, do. Not. Move._

I done as he said, and stayed where I was. So did everyone else. The guard looked back at us, confused as to why we stopped our advance. Before they had time to register the movement, a huge black shape hurled itself at them from the trees. It crashed into Jane with a feral snarl and snapped its razor sharp teeth. From all around, sixteen more shapes sprang into sight, slamming into the first vampire it reached. In a split second, every member of my family flashed from around me. And, so, the fight began. In the same beat, I flew through the air to where Sam was wrestling with Jane and sank my teeth into the vampires shoulder. I ripped and an ear splitting keening rang in my ears, cutting off Jane's howl of pain.

From every side I could hear snapping and growling and screaming. With quick glances I caught each of my family dancing violently with their opponents. I saw a flash that was Nessie, tearing off a huge chunk of granite flesh belonging to the small vampire called Lisa, before spinning gracefully to touch her lips to another un-named vampires neck. With a move so soft it could've been a kiss, she disconnected the boy's head from his body. Next to me, Emmett and Jasper were circling around a ragged looking Felix and in front of me, Edward was feigning left and right in front of Demetri. Esme and Rose were off to the left, destroying two young looking vampires with ease, Rose had a smug smile on her face as she watched Esme perfect the same move as Ness and decapitate one of them in one swift move. I caught a glimpse of Kate as she sent a shock through another, making him fold onto the floor. A burst of laughter escaped her lips. The other wolves were scattered around the clearing, snarling and snapping at the army of vampires the Volturi guard had brought here to protect them.

Bella was in the most violent dance of them all with Alec. She had ripped off his left arm and was tossing it into the trees. Almost too quickly for it to be fair to him, Bella leapt from her crouch and her hands closed around Alec's neck. There was a flashing second of darkness and silence for all of us before we got our sight and hearing back. Bella had crushed her hands together and tore, ripping his head straight off his shoulders. She let rip a triumphant growl and started quickly dismembering the rest of him. It was all almost too easy. Sam continued snapping at Jane, ripping off small chunks of her each time as she swiped at us both with gnarled hands. Her face was distorted, a huge bite missing from her left cheek. With each new tear at her or her brother, Jane screamed in pain.

"Aro!" She screeched, her eyes desperately searching for him "Help us!"

I stood back for a second to look around for the three Ancient Vampires and their shield, Renata, who had come here. They were nowhere. Not fighting with Carlisle, who was easily defeating two vampires on his own. Not with Kate and Garrett who were pulling at an arm each of a big burley vampire, about Emmett's size. They weren't with Alice and Carmen either, nor Eleazar, or any of the pack. They had fled. They were the only three left. Out of their entire guard who had came here today, they were all that remained. The rest of their coven were being decimated at this moment, each of them wearing the same expression of shock mixed with pain and defeat. They knew they were beat. They hadn't accounted for the pack anymore than we had. They expected to be done with my family of thirteen vampires and one lone wolf quickly and easily. They had planned on using Alec's mist to desensitize us, then they were going to destroy us. But, no, they hadn't accounted for the pack.

I took another quick glance around at my family, and seen that most of the dances were slowing down. With a breathtaking wave of relief, I saw that not one of them had so much as a scratch on them. Most were quickly dismantling their opponent, ripping them into small pieces that we would burn afterwards. My eyes wheeled as I looked for the most important one of all. Nessie. I couldn't see her anywhere. My eyes searched for her desperately, and then I heard her.

"Ha! That's how it's done!" Then she was laughing.

I bolted into the trees to find her tearing up the remains of what had been. . .

_Edward!_ I thought quickly, _Edward, get over here!_

I heard one last trembling snap as Edward's dance with Demetri ended in Edward's favor and he flashed to my side.

_Edward. . .Is that who I think it is? _I asked him, shock radiating through my voice.

"Renesmee. . .What. . ?" He was a stunned as I was.

Nessie turned to face us, a glorious smile on her face.

"He was taunting me." She shrugged, "He lured me into the trees and told me that a loud snap we heard was Jane breaking your neck, Jake. He asked for it. So I ripped him to pieces!" Her grin got impossibly wider.

_Oh. . .My. . ._

". . . God!" Edward finished my thought.

Nessie walked over to where the twitching limbs of the dead vampire lay and the base of a huge oak tree. She reached for something and brought it back to us.

"Jake, can I keep this a trophy?" She asked, that huge grin lighting up her entire face. Edward and I only stared in wonder.

"On second thoughts. . . I think I'll just burn it." And she threw the chunk back into the pile. She walked passed us, that huge smile still on her face, and called back,

"Oh, and by the way, I didn't do it myself, I can't take all the credit. I had help."

She danced away, laughing exuberantly, and launched straight into helping Sam finish off Jane. Edward and I gaped at each other, our mouths hanging open. At the same time, we looked back to the mound beneath the tree. On top was the quivering, open eyed head of Aro.

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	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen; Renesmee

Wow, what a rush! That was even better than I expected! I was terrified when all those vampires had appeared. I thought we were doomed for sure. But then the wolves had shown up. Jane and her army didn't stand a chance. It was spectacular; the way Sam had flown through the air, coming from nowhere, to slam into Jane so hard he threw her to the ground! She was not expecting that! The look on her face was almost comical. After half a heart beat, the rest of us had attacked. The vampires Jane had brought to fight for her were obviously young. They didn't last long against my family. Momma took Alec down without much trouble either. She was clearly right about those lovely twins, they've never had to learn how to fight, because they've always had others there to defend them. And obviously they've never been faced with anyone who rendered their 'gifts' useless. Jane's burning and Alec's sensory deprivation couldn't touch us through Momma's shield, and when we had come out from underneath it, we had attacked too quickly for them to use them. Every one of my family had been locked in a deadly fight with another vampire, but when I looked around, no one seemed to be having much trouble. I had just finished tearing apart the little vampire, Lisa, that Jane had presented to us, when someone called my name,

"Renesmee," It was a soft whispery voice, "Renesmee, come to me, my dear."

I had turned to see Aro, hovering in an opening in the trees, signaling to me with his hand. I hesitated.

"Renesmee, I wont hurt you. I don't want to harm you. Please, I need to call an end to this. Your family are destroying mine, I need to save as many of them as I can. Please, come, talk to me." His eyes bore straight into mine, "I won't hurt you." He repeated.

Honestly, I was curious. I didn't see how I could help. But it might be fun watching him ask for my help anyway. Vindictive, maybe, but he deserved it. I followed him slowly into the trees and stopped just a few feet in.

"What's the matter, Aro? Are you scared? Where's all your protectors?" I goaded him a little.

"Renesmee, please help. I have no one left here. Your family are killing mine. I just watched your mother tear my sweet Alec's head from his shoulders. Jane is gone, too, I think. Your father and your uncles are almost done with Demetri and Felix. There's nothing I can do, I have no one left." His head drooped in defeat.

"And what? You want sympathy from me? You came here to destroy me. I won't feel worry for you, Aro, and I won't help you." He lifted his head to look at me, "What happened to Caius and Marcus? Have they been destroyed, too? Or did they run from us?" A tiny sneer spread on my face.

"They fled." He said quietly, "They took Renata, and they fled, leaving me here alone."

"So, what do you want me to do, Aro? Do you want me to speak on your behalf and ask my family to spare you?" I asked sarcastically.

"No, my dear. I do not as the your family spare me." His eyes lit up, "Because, when I finish here, I will leave, and they will never know it was me." A small smile started on his face and I shivered a little. I didn't like that smile.

"Never know what was you?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"You see, sweet Renesmee, I did want your help. You said you wouldn't, but, actually, you did. I did not need you to stop this fight, I know this one I have already lost. All I needed was for you to be away from your family. And look!" He waved his hands around him, "Here we are. Just you and me, all alone. Your family are preoccupied in the clearing. They won't help you scream. And, actually, I don't think Jane is dead yet, did you hear that snap? I think that may have been your mate's neck." His little smile turned evil.

I growled. I looked around me, I hadn't noticed that slowly we had walked farther into the trees, he had led me here to my death, "So, you lured me here, Aro. You tricked me, because your _followers_ are being destroyed by my loved ones and you want to even the score? An eye for an eye, is that it?" I spoke slowly to keep my voice calm.

Aro shrugged, "More or less, my dear. You see, it would appear that the Cullens are going to survive this war without any casualties. Or so they would think. But they are mistaken. They will have one fatality, the one I was here for in the first place. And now, I will see to it." He growled the last words.

I glanced over my shoulder. I could still here the fight in the clearing, but I couldn't see anything. I turned back to Aro who had a glowing smile on his face,

"They won't hear you scream." He repeated.

"No, but they might hear you." My head snapped up at the sound of a new voice.

Aro whirled around to face the newcomer, and two figures appeared from the shadows behind him. His eyes widened,

"Stefan, Vladimir." He whispered.

The Romanians! What were they doing here?

"So, you're planning on destroying this young one are you, Aro?" Stefan asked, walking towards him.

Aro didn't respond. He just stared at the Romanians, his mouth open slightly. They walked around Aro and came to a stop at either side of me, just a few steps ahead.

"Well, Aro?" Vladimir asked him and Aro spun and focused his eyes on Vladimir, "My brother asked you a question, Ancient. Answer him. Did you plan on destroying the child?"

"Yes." Aro whispered.

Stefan and Vladimir laughed together. Aro's wide eyes stretched even further.

"Don't you just hate it when your plans get thwarted? Irritating, isn't it?" Vladimir asked Aro, still laughing.

I looked from one to the other of them, then at Aro. I was still dumbstruck. Suddenly, the laughter stopped and they were both abruptly serious.

"Listen to me, Ancient. I am going to make you a promise," Stefan began, his glare thunderous, "You will not touch one hair on this young one's head. I promise you, that if you make on move towards her, _we_ will destroy _you_." The last word was a snarl.

"Stefan, my old friend, come now." Aro began, his hands raised in front of him, "It does not need to go that far. I wasn't really going to harm the sweet child," He laughed lightly, "I just wanted to scare her really, I was going to spare her. I was." His tone was almost pleading.

Both of the Romanians snorted, "Yes, Aro, I'm sure that is _exactly_ what you were going to do." Stefan muttered sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"Okay, Aro, here are your choices," Vladimir began, his voice so dark it was frightening, "Either you will beg for us to spare you, or you can fight, and lose. It is your decision."

Aro stared at Stefan and Vladimir, as did I. My quick brain was still a beat behind, still trying to figure out where they had come from. The obvious fear in Aro's voice brought me back to the present in an instant,

"No, please, there is no need for that. I do not want any hostility here. Come now, friends, let us part in peace." His voice was quivering, his hands still stretched out in front of him.

"Never." Stefan and Vladimir growled together.

"We have been waiting many, many years to take you down, Aro. And here we find you," Stefan took a step towards Aro, "You have no protector, no one to fight for or with you. Today we have our chance. You will not leave here, Aro. This is where you spend your final moments."

Vladimir smiled menacingly at Aro, then turned back to me,

"Go, child. Go back to your family." He said softly.

It took me a second to understand what he was saying, then I shook my head,

"No," I told him, my voice sure, "He came here to destroy me. I'm staying." I turned to Aro, feeling all my fear slip away and pure rage take its place. I spoke to him in a snarl, "I will watch you die, Aro. And I will help them kill you. For me, for Jacob, for my whole family. For all of them, today, you die."

With that, I slipped into a crouch and a growl escaped my lips. The Romanians grinned at each other, then were in crouches of their own. Aro took a step back, terror flashing across his face.

"Sweet Renesmee, please, you don't want to do this, do you? Not really. Think of your family, your mate, fighting in the clearing. They need you." His voice was desperate.

I felt no sympathy for him, no doubt or fear about what I was about to do. Aro had caused my family too much pain, and for that, he would pay. He would pay with his life.

"Quite, Aro. You heard the girl. Today, you die." Stefan spat at him.

I took one more appraising look at Aro, who was slowly backing away, then I nodded once at the Romanians. I slunk deeper into my crouch and stalked forward, towards the trembling Ancient,

My lips pulled back from my teeth as I spoke,

"Goodbye, Aro."

---------------------------------- ------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------

I darted into the clearing, leaving Daddy and Jacob staring spastically at the pile of limbs that used to be Aro. Just as I flitted through the trees, I heard Daddy call back to me,

"Wait a second, Renesmee, what do you mean you had help?"

I laughed at him without answering and ran over to Sam, who was calmly dismembering Jane. I helped him, tossing the pieces of her onto the huge pile that everyone else had already made. All around me, my family and the wolves were finishing off the members of the Volturi guard and their army, who thought they were a match for us. The only ones left of those ancient ones who came here were Caius and Marcus. And they had fled, taking Aro's personal guard, Renata, with them. They had left Aro alone, and as a result, Daddy was, just this second, burning his corpse. It probably wasn't exactly proper to be so ecstatic while tearing apart a sentient creature, but, actually, I was having _fun_. It appeared I wasn't the only one either. I turned at the sound of a giggle to see Momma and Uncle Emmett finishing off Felix. Momma spun like a ballerina and launched one of his hands into the fast growing pile. I looked passed them and found Grandma and Aunt Rose picking up pieces of their conquests. They were talking and laughing, as if they were shopping. Behind me, Uncle Jasper and Quil were searching around the clearing for pieces the others might have missed. No one seemed hurt, no one even seemed slightly stressed. My heart leapt as I took in each of them, each of my family and all of the wolves, standing perfect, not a scratch on them. I counted, just making sure they were all there. Thirteen vampires, including Daddy, who was just walking through the trees, his face still wearing the mask of shock, and. . . sixteen wolves? No, that wasn't right, I counted again. Jacob was with Daddy, then there were another fifteen. Where was the seventeenth? Who was missing? I turned to Sam,

"Sam. . . " He looked up at me, Jane's leg in his mouth, "There are only sixteen wolves. There should be seventeen. Who's missing?" I was still looking around as I spoke.

Sam's eyes wheeled around and Jane's leg dropped from his mouth. He searched around the clearing, counting, and his eyes widened as he came up one short. His head whipped around and he looked my father and Jacob.

"Who is it?" Daddy asked, his voice a whisper.

Jake wined uneasily beside him, his eyes on Sam.

"No. . . no, wait. Who though that? Jared? No, don't do that, just hold on a second, please!" Daddy finished in a yell.

Everyone froze and looked around at him.

"Edward, what's going on?" Momma asked, flashing to his side.

"Ness counted the wolves and there's someone missing." He replied, his voice a whisper again.

I turned to look at Jake and Sam, who were staring at each other, having a silent conversation. Jake looked at Daddy, who answered Jacob's thought,

"You can? Where is he? Is he hurt?" He asked quickly. His eyes unfocused as he watched the same thing as Jacob and Sam.

"Edward, what's happening? Who is it?" Tanya asked.

"Seth." Daddy replied without looking at her.

"What?" I cried, "No, I seen Seth! He was over. . ." I turned to point to the far end of the clearing, where I pointed at thin air. I faltered, I was so sure I had saw him there. . .

"We can see him now," Daddy said, slipping into the pack plural, "He's in the trees. . .somewhere." He looked around, "What is he doing? Who is that?"

"Daddy, what can you see?" I yelled to him.

"We. . . We don't know. He's circling. . . Someone. I think." He spoke quietly.

"Jacob, no, stay where you are, just for one second. . . Let me concentrate." Everyone was silent, then Daddy's head whipped around and he stared behind him.

"Seth!" He called, "Seth, no! Don't lunge, don't move, just stay. . ." he gasped and reached out to something invisible, "Seth!" He cried. His face twisted in pain.

"Daddy!" I yelled, running to him.

"Renesmee. . ." He gasped, "We need to move. We have to help him." He whirled around to face Jake, "Go, Jacob! We'll follow."

Jacob took off immediately, Sam right on his heels. Daddy flew after them and the rest of us followed. We ran in a straight line, right to where Sam, Daddy and Jacob had seen Seth. We stopped at another little clearing in the trees and I heard everyone gasp. Seth was lying in a heap on the ground, twitching in pain. There was blood seeping from his forehead and his left hind leg, and he was whimpering slightly.

"No! Stop!" A voice cried behind me. I didn't look to see who it was.

The figure standing over Seth gazed up and paused. It was Caius. Marcus and Renata were frozen behind him.

"Don't hurt him, Caius. This isn't about him. Leave. Him. Alone." Daddy told him through his teeth, his voice menacing.

Caius' eyes swept the group and they bulged as they settled on me. I smirked at him.

"You. . . Aro. . ." He stuttered, pointing at me.

"Oh, didn't you hear? Aro's plan failed. Miserably. I killed him." I shrugged, Caius and Marcus hissed and Renata whimpered.

"No. . ." Caius breathed, "You lie, child! You could not defeat him alone!"

"Oh, I wasn't' alone. I had some help from the Romanians, Stefan and Vladimir. Remember them, do you, Caius?" I was still smirking at him. His face was twisted with rage. "Yes, they were here, but they've gone now. They left after we tore Aro into tiny pieces." Caius and Marcus snarled, and Uncle Emmett snickered behind me.

Caius straightened fully and took a step toward us.

"Do you really want to do that, Caius?" Momma asked him, "There are thirty-one of us here. We will be done with you in seconds. Your shield wont deter us all." He smirk matched mine.

He took a step back again, and ever so slightly, he lowered his body back towards Seth.

"Ah, no, no. you don't want to be doing that either. Leave the boy alone, Caius. Step away from him." Momma warned him.

All at once, my family, all thirty-one of us, took a step towards Caius. His eyes flashed to each of us, then to Marcus and Renata, then to the trees behind him. He was clearly planning his escape.

"No, don't go, Caius." Tanya purred at him. His eyes were still jumping back and forth between us and his escape route.

We took another collective step towards him.

"You'll miss all the fun." Kate and Carmen said together smoothly.

One more step towards him.

"You've been waiting a long time for this, haven't you? And now you want to leave?" Uncle Emmett asked him.

Another step forward.

"Please stay, Caius." Daddy said, his voice velvet.

Caius' eyes were terrified. He glanced back at Marcus and Renata who were slowly backing away.

"Marcus, won't you stay, too?" Aunt Rose asked him with a sweet smile.

Another step.

"This is it, _friends_." Grandpa said, his voice taking on Aro's condescending tone, "You wanted us, and here we are."

We fanned out. It was as though we had the move practiced. Grandpa, Daddy, Uncle Emmett and Uncle Jasper took another half step forward so that were in a semi circle, blocking their escape. Jacob, Tanya, Kate, Carmen, Aunt Alice, Collin, Jared and myself slid around to complete the circle. We surrounded them.

"Caius. . ." Marcus breathed, his voice full of terror.

Another joint step forward and the circle tightened.

"There is no escape for you. Look around. You won't get through us." Tanya sneered at them.

In the middle of the circle, Seth stirred and slowly got to his feet. I heard the rest of the wolves breathe deep in relief. Seth took a few shaky steps and joined the circle, in between Tanya and Jared.

"You're scared, aren't you?" I asked Caius, my smirk back, "Funny, Aro wore the same expression."

Caius took a step towards Marcus and Renata, just as they took a step towards him. One last step from us and the circle closed completely. There were no gaps.

"This ends now, Caius. You will never come for my family again. You won't have the chance." Grandpa told him, his voice a threatening whisper, "This ends _now!_" He repeated.

With one last look around the circle, each of my family slipped into a crouch. A vicious snarl ripped from thirty-one pairs of lips, and, without another thought, we lunged.

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	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen: Jacob

"Make sure you get them all." Edward was saying.

He might have said something else after that, but I wasn't really paying attention. I was standing at the edge of the clearing, my eyes raking over every inch of Renesmee. She looked fine, she was currently throwing large chunks of vampire onto the giant pile with the rest of the family, laughing and joking with Emmett like this was a hobby of hers. My eyes dragged slowly from the top of her head, to the very tip of her toes. There wasn't a mark on her, not a hair out of place. I searched over her twice, the second time from the feet up. I kept her face for last. As my gaze reached her face, she looked up and her eyes met mine. She smiled a dazzling smile at me and lobbed a large piece of granite flesh onto the heap. She wiped her hands on her jeans, slapped Emmett a high-five and walked towards me. I phased quickly, pulling on my sweats as she approached. When she reached me, I opened my arms to her and she threw herself into them. And then I was kissing her, every part of her that my lips could reach. I grasped her face gently in my hands and kissed every inch of it; her eye lids, her cheeks, her neck, then finally, her lips.

"Nessie," I breathed, in between kisses, "Are you okay? You're alright?"

"Jake, I'm fine, completely perfect, honestly." She said with a laugh.

"You're sure?" I asked her, staring into her eyes. They were wide and happy.

"I promise, I'm totally fine." She told me quietly.

I puller her back into my arms and held her close, just for another moment. Then I kissed her. I kissed her hungrily, as though I needed to, just to survive, not ever wanting to stop. Edward had other ideas, though.

He cleared his throat, "Renesmee, Jacob, please, can't that wait?"

Nessie giggled and turned to him, "Sorry, Daddy."

When I turned to them, I saw that everyone of them were watching us. Some looked embarrassed, some amused. Kate and Carmen looked as though they would cry if they could, Emmett winked with a huge grin and Alice was laughing quietly, shaking her head. We walked back to the rest of them just as Esme threw the last piece of vampire onto the huge pile and Carlisle lit a small petrol lighter. He put the flame to one chunk and the whole thing erupted, sending fire licking upwards. The huge cloud of billowing smoke rose and we all backed away from it. The smell was too strong, almost choking. We walked slowly away from the burning mass back to the house. When we reached the steps, we stopped and turned. No one spoke, we just watched as the dense purple smoke rose higher into the clear blue sky. I though about what had happened here today, thought about the vampires lost. Jane, Alec, Demetri, Felix, Caius, Marcus, Renata and Aro. And all the un-named vampires that the guard had brought here to their death. Life would be peaceful now. There would be no more Volturi, no more guard to threaten our happiness. They were gone. What was left of them was ablaze in the clearing now. Yes, life would be quiet now. . .

------------------------- ---------------------------------- ------------------------------- -----------

Back at the house, the atmosphere was euphoric. The wolves all went home, without a word to us. I thanked Sam for everything they had done, for risking their lives to save ours, for we wouldn't have stood a chance without them. His reply was to nod one, then follow on after the others. I knew they didn't come here today just for me; they had wanted revenge on the Volturi as much as we had. They came here for Nessie, for which I would be eternally grateful.

Everyone else stayed around for a long while, describing their account of the day. We laughed for bit at Emmett's impressions of Jane and Alec screaming and yelling in pain. Slightly sadistic, maybe, but I felt no remorse for them. The Denali's were planning to stay for another few days, so that they could hear every detail of the honeymoon. When the conversation turned to the trip, Bella excused herself and asked to speak with me outside. I shot her a confused look, but followed her anyway. She walked away from the house and sat on one of the wrought iron benches out back. When I sat next to her, she took my hand and turned to look into my eyes.

"You alright, Bells?" I asked her.

"Yeah, I'm perfect, Jake." She told me, smiling.

"Well, then, what's up? What did you want to talk to me about?"

"I just needed to spend some time with you, Jacob., That alright?" Her smile got wider.

I grinned back at her, "I'm cool with that."

We sat for a while, talking about the weather, about the trip she and Edward were thinking of taking. We didn't talk about anything in particular, we just sat, like we used to, before we were both married, like back when it was just me and Bella.

"Tell me about a good day, Jake." Bella asked after a few moments of comfortable silence, as she leaned into my side.

I wrapped my arm around her, "A good day. . . Let me see." I thought for a second, "Oh, okay. Do you remember that day when Ness was about fifteen and when we came in, Alice was yelling at her because she was caught trying to sneak out?" I laughed at the memory.

Bella laughed with me, "Ah, yeah, I thought Alice was gonna explode she was so angry. It's not often you find that the Aunt is more strict than the mother."

"Not every Aunt is like Alice, though." I pointed out.

"True." She chuckled. "So, how was that a good day?"

"Well, do you remember where we were that day?"

"Of course I do," She answered right away, "We were at first beach, just me and you."

"Yeah, just me and you. It hadn't been that way in a long time, before that day. I was so content on that beach, so happy. I missed you as my best friend, you know. And that was the first time in a long time that it felt like _us_ again. That was a great day." I sighed.

"Yeah, that was a good day." She agreed. "You know, I sort of had an epiphany that day." she told me.

"Oh, yeah? About what?" I asked, grinning down at her again.

"Well, we were sitting quietly on our bench there for a while, remember? And I was thinking about this family, about all the people in my life and I realized something. In the years before that, I had been almost unbelievably happy. My life was perfect, there was nothing I would change. But sitting there with you, I realized that the only reason my life was totally complete, one hundred percent perfect was because of you."

"Me?" I asked in surprise.

"Yeah, you." She smiled up at me, "My life was almost perfect because I had Edward and then Renesmee. But when I first changed and I thought you couldn't be around me, there was something missing in my life, you know? Like, a hole somewhere that couldn't be filled by anyone else but you. And then you imprinted on Ness, and you were there, everyday in my world. And it was complete. My world isn't whole without you, Jacob. You're my best friend, you'll always be my best man." She sighed happily.

Tears welled up in my eyes and I hastily wiped them away before she would notice.

"Love you, Bells." I told her softly after a minute.

"Love you, too, Jake."

------------------ -------------------------- ---------------------------- ---------------------- ------

As Ness and I walked home that night, we didn't speak. We walked silently through the trees, her hand clasped in mine. After this long day, all I wanted was to be alone with her, to fill my hours of nothing but her. When we got into the house, I spun Nessie around then pulled her close to me. I grasped her face in my hands and just looked at her for a moment. She was so incredibly beautiful. I felt like I would never get enough of her. I thought if I spent every moment of every day looking at her, it still wouldn't be enough. I leaned in towards her and pressed my lips softly to hers. She sighed quietly and crushed her body to mine. After a few minutes, she pulled away and looked back into my eyes.

"Jake," She whispered, "I've been thinking . . . If there is only ever the two of us, if we can't ever be more than just me and you, will that be enough for you?"

"Of course it will!" I answered immediately, "You will always be more than I will ever need. You are more than I ever thought I deserved, everything I could ever want." I smiled down at her.

"Are you sure, Jake? I know how much you want this." She said, reaching up to stroke my cheek gently.

"Ness, I promise. If all I can ever have is you, I will be more than happy. If, one day, there are more little baby Blacks running around here, then great. If not, I will still have more than I will ever need. You are my life, my soul, me everything."

"I love, Jacob Black. Did you know that?" She grinned at me.

I chuckled, "I had an idea."

I leaned down to kiss her gently once more, then I wrapped my arms around her waist. I lifted her off her feet and swung her up into my arms. I held her there, drinking in every inch of her. Yes, she was more than enough for me. As long as I had her, my life would be complete.

And I would love her forever.

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	16. Chapter 16 Five years later

Jacob: Five Years Later

A lot has changed in the last five years. . .

To start with, my pack rejoined me. Slowly, they had forgiven me and our relationships had returned to normal, the way they were before that awful night of Leah's death. Even Seth, who had sworn he would never forgive me, had grown to see that it wasn't my fault. He had almost forgiven Tanya, too, although I don't think that relationship will ever be the same as it was.

Edward and Bella were pretty much the same; deliriously happy and very much in love. They spent less time around the big house now. Since Ness and I were married, and had our own home, Bella had gotten over her fear that Ness would be lost without her and that something would happen to Ness if Bella wasn't around. So, she and Edward traveled a lot, going around the world. They took frequent trips to Isle Esme, the little island where they had spent their honeymoon. It was totally secluded, only their house on the island, so they could be themselves there. They could go out in the sun and not worry about anyone spotting them. Bella loved it there. They went back every few months, moaning that they wanted to go back as soon as they were home again. When they were home though, we didn't see them everyday like we used to. They were busy being married, just like Ness and I. In all the time I had known them as a married couple, I had never heard them argue, never seen them angry with each other. Oh yes, they were in love alright.

Alice and Jasper moved into their own house, too, about two years ago. Esme had worked her wonders again, and built them their own quaint little chateaux, about three miles from the big house. It reminded me of the cabin that Ness and I honeymooned in. A beautiful, quiet little place, surrounded in trees and flowers. Exactly right for Alice, she adored it. Especially the monstrous closet Esme had added for her. Of course, some things never change.

Rosalie and Emmett still lived in the big house with Carlisle and Esme. When they were home anyway. Like Bella and Edward, Rosalie and Emmett loved to travel. They had spent most of the year before last in the Swiss Alps, shacked up in another little place that Carlisle owned. They had left in may for a few weeks, but kept delaying their return. They finally came home in September for Nessie's 21st birthday, and they stayed for Christmas and New Year, then jetted off again in January until April. They were only home for three days when Rose was bugging Emmett about their next trip. He loved to please her, so the very next day, he booked flights for October. Rosalie moaned that it was too far away, but Emmett reminded her of Renesmee and Bella's birthday, which of course were on the same day since Bella now refused to celebrate her human birthday, only her vampire one. Rose pouted, but accepted it. So, there was rarely ever a time when the house was as full as it used to be.

Carlisle and Esme had gone on a few holidays, too, but Esme preferred to stay home. She had made her home renovations into a career, making money from her tasteful eye. She loves her job, so hated to leave too often. That suits Carlisle fine, too. He still works at the hospital, on the night shift, of course. He's been commended for his work, finding a cure for some tropical disease. They offered him residency director and even chief of medicine , but he had turned them both down. They had tried to persuade him, tempt him with more money and shorter hours. But Carlisle had assured them that neither mattered to him, he really only wanted to help people. He was still the kindest, most gentle man I had ever met. Like I said, some things never change.

The Denali's visited often. Almost four years ago, they had added another one to their numbers. Tanya had finally found her mate, her other half. The sisters had found Jay while they were hunting. He had been very badly injured in a hiking accident, and was just on the brink of death. They had carried him back to their home and Tanya had changed him. They had taught him how to live their way and he had taken to it quickly, fitting in well with their family and ours. So, now Jay was a part of our lives, too, and Tanya was happier now than I had ever seen her. Truthfully, everyone seemed happier now.

Renesmee and I, I think, are the most content of all. The only thing that had changed between us was that I may love her even more that I had before, although I never thought that was possible. We were happy and in love, no where near over the 'honeymoon stage' of our marriage yet, but I hoped we never would be. Everyday I was with Ness was better than the day before. Because I have loved her for her entire life, before she was born even, I never believed that I could ever get my fill of her. It was easy for me to spend every second of everyday with Ness and still find new things I loved about her. Sometimes I watched her as she played the piano in the sitting room, or washed up our dishes, and my heart would leap. It was the little things that made me realize how much I wanted, needed and loved her. Like how, when she washes our dinner things, she bites her bottom lip, and always hums the same tune. Or when she's heading into the shower, she always places her wedding and engagement rings under her pillow, and when she does, she pats the pillow as if to make sure they're safe there. And how, every night before bed, she kisses my lips twice and my neck once, as a sort of ritual that never fails to send me into a happy dream. She truly is the best thing about my life.

For a long time after the confrontation with the Volturi in the clearing that day, I was terrified to let Ness out of my sight. Everywhere she went, I worried that she wouldn't come back, and every time she did, my heart jumped as thought she had been gone for months. My greatest fear in life was losing her, so I was irrationally protective of her. The feeling was only to be magnified.

One night - about two years after the fight with the Volturi - Ness and I were in bed. I dreamed about the bonfire Bella and I had gone to with my pack all those years before. But it was different, instead of Bella being there with me, it was Leah, she was my Bella. Bella sat across from me with a cold look in her eyes, a total stranger, someone I had never met. I called to her, begging her to talk to me because I felt like I should know her, like something was missing because we weren't friends. But she didn't seem to hear me, or she pretended not to. I closed my eyes, squeezed them shut, trying to clear my mind, to shake away the uneasy feeling, when I heard a growl. When I looked up, every one of my friends - including Leah and Billy - had phased into giant wolves, foaming at the mouth, their hungry, ferocious eyes locked on Bella. She sat alone and unprotected gazing up at them with wonder on her face, not a single trace of fear. It didn't feel right, something inside me tried to scream at Bella to run, to save herself from these monsters. But no sound escaped my lips. I tried to jump to protect her, but my body was frozen. I could do nothing but watch. So I watched as these feral animals slunk towards this innocent looking girl, growls escaping from each of their mouths. I struggled against the bind holding my body with no effect as each of the wolves stepped closer to Bella, who now had a sweet smile on her face. When they were only half a foot away from her, the wolves stopped and crouched. Bella stood and spread her arms, welcoming them to her. Her smile widened as they snarled back at her. Her gaze turned to me and she winked,

"It's alright, Jacob." She whispered to me, "It's okay, this is how it was meant to be."

As I sat helpless, locked inside my own mind with no escape and no way to help her, I watched as Bella closed her eyes, that smile still on her lips. Just before I snapped my eyes shut, I seen them leap. There was no sound, apart from the air whooshing past them. I screwed up my eyes, trying to wish myself away from here, away from the beautiful, innocent girl I would not, could not protect. And then I heard her scream,

"Jacob! Why aren't you helping me? Please, Jake, I need your help!" My eyes flashed open to find no wolves and no Bella.

Instead, stood in front of me like my greatest fear came alive, was Ness. She was surrounded by every member of the Volturi we had destroyed two years earlier. Her body was streaked with blood, her clothes ripped, her skin covered in bites. Again, I tried to jump to save her, but I couldn't move, the bind was still holding me. I struggled with the invisible chains keeping me from saving her. And then she screamed. A bloodcurdling scream of pain that made every hair on my body stand on end. . .

I bolted upright in bed yelling out for Nessie. I was panting and trembling so hard my ribs ached and tears streamed freely down my cheeks.

"Jake!" Nessie called out in alarm, "Hey, it's alright! You're okay, it was just a bad dream, everything's okay."

I turned to her, my heart threatening to jump out of my chest. She leaned over towards me, her hands trembling like mine, and placed them gently on either side of my face.

"Jacob, are you alright? It was just a dream Jake, everything is fine." She kissed my face, kissing away the tears.

She soothed me until my tears stopped and my breathing slowed, then I was able to describe the dream to her. After I was finished, I took one big deep breath. I knelt up in the bed and turned to face Nessie. I grasped her face in my hands and stared into her eyes,

"Promise me, Ness, promise me right now, that you will never leave me. That we will always be together and that you will let me love you forever."

"I promise, Jake. Of course I wont go anywhere, I will be here with you forever." She whispered back.

She closed her eyes and brought her lips to mine. She pulled back and looked up at me, her eyes burning. She smiled a beautiful, sweet smile and kissed me again. Twice on the lips, then once on the neck. When I finally went back to sleep that night, there were no more nightmares, just wonderful dreams full of sunshine and warmth. I dreamed of my life with Ness, with my pack. I saw my other family; Bella and Edward, Alice and Jasper, Emmett and Rose and Carlisle and Esme. And just before my eyes opened to the new day, I dreamed of two beautiful black haired children, running towards me, their laughter floating to me, their angels faces alive with a vibrancy that could only come from my Renesmee.

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	17. Chapter 17 A Final Note

A Final Note; Jacob.

Another fifteen years later.

I wonder if we'll go back there. And then I think, of course we will. It's where we belong. It's the only place I've ever _really_ known. It's the only place I've ever really known _myself._

My life changed forever the day Bella moved back home. If I'd only known then what I know now ..

Bella asked me yesterday if I miss it, and I answered without hesitation; yes, of course I do. I miss that big, beautiful house. I miss that house most of all. Our house is in Alaska now, it's where our lives are. But it will never be where our hearts are. It will never be home.

Forks .. Forks is home. It's where all this began, where my life truly started. It's where I met my wife, where I found my family. It's where my children were born. All of our lives honestly began there, where we all came together, finally, to make a family.

Forks is where it all started.

Forks is where it will all end.


End file.
